


Tails and the Abandoned Fox Cubs

by AndTails



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Adoption, Baby cubs, Brotherly Love, Clueless parents, Family, Floof, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, New Parents, OCs - Freeform, abandoned toddlers, baby kits, bros, feel-good story, uwu
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:41:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 24,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26289658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AndTails/pseuds/AndTails
Summary: In a time of relative peace, Tails the Fox stumbles across a litter of abandoned fox kits. The two-tailed kitsune and his older brother Sonic take the cubs in as their own. Fluff and UwU contained within.
Relationships: Miles "Tails" Prower & Sonic the Hedgehog
Comments: 11
Kudos: 44





	1. Dumpster Diving

Life was good.

At least it was so for Miles “Tails” Prower, the young, orange fox who kept himself busy as Sonic the Hedgehog’s sidekick, both on and off the battlefield. The notoriously evil Dr. Eggman hadn’t been terrorizing the people of Mobius for some time now, so the two-tailed kitsune put his free time to good use: stocking up on tools for his workshop.

After purchasing a bag full of supplies from downtown Station Square’s hardware store, the fox decided that a treat to help cool himself off from the scorching hot weather was in order. 

“Man, this is delicious!” Tails said to himself, walking out of a fast food restaurant with a straw in his mouth, enjoying the Mobian Scout™ mint chocolate chip cookie shake as he strolled down the crowded sidewalks of the big city. “If only they had this shake year-round, I’d be a regular customer!” Taking another sip, the young fox stood in the center of the sidewalk, pondering his next move.

_Should I walk back to my plane or fly there?_

Tails planted his feet against the concrete as he bent his knees, focusing on spinning his rotary namesakes which allowed him to take flight, an abnormality which, to this day, he is unable to explain with the laws of physics. Sticking his tongue out slightly from the side of his mouth, he increased their speed as he began to lift himself from the ground like a helicopter.

“Hey, man! You’re makin’ too much of a ruckus here!”

Tails immediately stopped spinning his namesakes, landing back on the ground before swinging himself around to find a row of fellow Mobians of different species waiting behind him. The normally well-kept hair of those nearest the orange kitsune were sticking up, and their eyes were wide open in surprise.

“Oops, sorry about that.” The orange fox placed a hand behind his head and chuckled nervously, forgetting just how much wind his tails could generate.

_I guess that settles that, then._

The young kitsune strolled along, sipping his dessert beverage in one hand as he swayed the disposable bag in the other, smiling to himself as he took in the air around him. While he enjoyed the unpolluted fresh air of the Mystic Ruins, where he lived with Sonic at his combined household and workshop, the scent of car exhaust reminded him greatly of machinery, making him all the more excited to get home and start his next project: upgrading his signature Tornado biplane. 

Walking down a busy sidewalk, the fox could hear something down the alleyway over the sounds of passing vehicles and pedestrians on their cell phones.

“What is that?” The orange fox peered down the alley, bags of garbage caking the gap between the two tall buildings on either side with broken glass, dented aluminum cans, and other refuse strewn all about. Twitching a triangular ear, the fox cupped a gloved hand around it, hoping to better hone-in on the noise.

“Is that…” Tails leaned in closer, as if wishing to avoid physically stepping into the disgusting alley unless absolutely necessary. “Is that crying I hear?” The young kitsune took careful steps into the abandoned alley, watching the ground below as he narrowly avoided crushing a rat feeding on a half-eaten hotdog. The crying grew louder as he ventured deeper down the narrow path. Finally, he came upon a dumpster, located on the corner where the alley made a sharp turn between several sets of tall buildings.

Setting his beverage and bag down on the dirty pavement below, the fox rubbed his hands before lifting the heavy lid, allowing it to crash against the side of the parallel building where it remained upright. Pulling himself up by the side of the refuse bin, Tails looked within. His pupils shrank and jaw dropped when he discovered what was contained therein.

“What the heck?” he managed to say as he crawled over the side of the slimy dumpster, landing inside with a thud, falling on his behind as garbage caked his once pristine fur. The force of the fall caused the dumpster lid to close with a loud bang, plunging Tails into the pitch black.

“Great. Just great…” The young kitsune reached his dirty paws into his utility belt for a miniature flashlight. Fumbling in the darkness for several seconds, he eventually found it, pulling it out of the zipped compartment and flicking it on. Scanning the immediate vicinity of the dumpster, his face contorted as his nose finally caught up with the smell of the weeks-old garbage stewing in the hot sun. He was about to plug his nose with his fingers when he remembered that his gloves were covered in slime.

Resisting the urge to vomit, Tails aimed his flashlight toward the corner of the dumpster to find a cardboard box. Crawling over to it with one hand, and holding the flashlight with the other, the orange fox verified what he thought he saw and heard earlier.

A litter of fox cubs.

Five to be exact. Each were small, about a foot tall, no clothes save for their diapers. The furry toddlers were crawling over each other to see the light flashing at them from above.

“At least they stopped crying.” Tails wedged his flashlight beneath his armpit as he felt around the cardboard box. “Seems sturdy enough.” Standing up, Tails lifted himself out of the dumpster, pushing the lid open as he balanced along its rim before using his rotary namesakes to float back down into the refuse bin toward the box of cubs. The toddlers appeared transfixed, adorably looking up at their savior with big eyes. The elder fox smiled back at them as he hovered over the nameless kits. 

Maintaining a small gap between himself and the cardboard box, Tails clasped onto either side as he began to float out of the dumpster.

“Man…you’re heavy for a bunch of cubs.” Tails strained his wrists as his arms wobbled. Steering himself away from the garbage, the young kitsune gently set the box down in the alley before collapsing next to the fox litter, smashing his face against the cement as he fell.

“Ohhh…” Tails rubbed his bruised forehead before returning his attention to the box by his side. All five of them stared at him with wonder in their eyes, their heads tilted in curiosity and their small paws hooked over the edge of the box.

Tails crawled over to get a better look at them. All were roughly the same size, a shade of yellowish-orange not unlike his own fur, but none of them had more than one tail. What they lacked in tail quantity they more than made up for in fluff, their faces so overgrown with fur they’d need some proper grooming eventually. 

“Ahhhh.” Tails sighed as he allowed the endorphins to course through his veins. He extended a gloved hand toward the box, the small cubs reaching their own hands out to touch it. They merrily laughed, with one clapping their hands together excitedly. 

“They’re so adorable.” Tails chuckled as he placed his free hand behind his head. His face turned cold, however, when his mind wandered to how the cubs ended up in the dumpster in the first place. 

“What kind of monsters would throw away their own kids?” He frowned as he allowed the children to grab hold of his arm. They laughed as they crawled over each other.

“Well, I can’t get them home all by myself.” Tails activated his wristwatch communicator, which was conveniently strapped to his free arm, and raised it to his muzzle. 

“Call. Sonic.” The watch began ringing before abruptly stopping with a crackle. 

“Hiya Tails!” came a cheerful, enthusiastic voice.

“Hey Sonic,” Tails began, trying to figure out just how to explain the situation to his older brother. After a few seconds of silence, he ultimately decided to keep his request vague, determining that it’d be best to show the blue hedgehog his predicament rather than to tell him over the phone. “Kinda have a situation here. Can you meet me in Station Square? I’m in an abandoned alley just south of the burger joint.”

“I’ll be there in a flash!” Not questioning his younger bro, Sonic disconnected the call as Tails placed his wrist in his lap. Looking down, the young kitsune smiled once more as two of the cubs gnawed his arm. 

“That tickles!” Tails giggled, refusing to pull his arm away as the remaining cubs watched the elder fox laughing beside them with cheerful smiles on their faces.

Lifting the arm that kept the cubs amused, one of them clasped their own arms around it as Tails brought the child toward his lap. Carefully maneuvering his other arm, he cradled the kit against his furry belly. Having no experience in the area of parenting, the elder fox instinctively rocked his arms left and right as the cub’s eyelids slowly began to close.

Tails’ own eyes began to grow heavy until he jolted himself upright as a blast of air whizzed past him, followed by the unmistakable sound of a certain hedgehog’s shoes skidding against the concrete. Tilting his head back, he looked up at his older brother, sipping on the orange kitsune’s long-forgotten mint milkshake.

“Oh, hiya Sonic.” Tails smiled as the blue hedgehog slurped down the rest of the dessert beverage. “What took you so long?” Crushing the cylindrical cup with a gloved fist, Sonic threw it toward the nearby dumpster. Despite the long throw, the cup landed perfectly in the center of the refuse bin. 

“What d’ya mean ‘so long’?” Sonic made air quotes with his fingers. “Your directions weren’t exactly specific, you know.”

“Heh, I guess not.” The young kitsune itched the back of his head while using his other arm to keep the fox cub cradled against his chest.

“What do we have here?” The blue hedgehog bent his knees, allowing himself a closer view of the fox cub below. “So…who’s the mom?” Sonic grinned at his younger brother, who gasped at the blue hedgehog’s sarcastic insinuation.

“Wait, they’re not _my_ kids, Sonic.” Tails looked down at the cub in his lap before peering over at the toddlers in the cardboard box, who had since cuddled against each other and begun to fall asleep themselves. “After all, they each only have a single tail.” The young kitsune fluttered his namesakes to emphasize his point.

“Either way,” Sonic replied, standing upright once more before folding his arms, “how’d they end up here?”

“I’m just as confused as you are, Sonic.” Tails gently lifted himself up, careful not to wake the cub in his arms as he gently set them alongside their siblings. The toddler instinctively wrapped their small arms around a neighboring torso. “You see, I was walking back to the Tornado when I heard them crying in the alley, so I came to investigate.” The young fox pointed toward the dumpster. “I found them in the trash over there, so I flew them out and called you.”

“Absolutely disgusting.” Sonic tightened his fists as his arms shook. “Who’d do something like this, Tails?” The blue hedgehog gritted his teeth in anger.

“It’s okay, Sonic.” Tails approached his older brother and gave him a hug. “I’m just as mad as you, but what matters now is that they’re safe.” It took Sonic several seconds to loosen his fists before raising his palms against the orange kitsune’s back, reciprocating his hug in earnest. Gently pulling himself away from the embrace, Tails raised a gloved finger to his chin.

“What should we do now?” He looked down at the sleeping toddlers, concern written on his face.

“Have you thought about taking them to the police?” Sonic emulated his younger brother, rubbing his chin as he peered down at the small fox cubs.

“I’m not sure that is a good idea.” Tails gently kicked a small pebble into a dirty puddle several meters away. “If we do that, the kids would be put into some foster home. I don’t wanna do that to them, Sonic!” The young kitsune’s eyes began to moisten.

“I don’t want that either, Tails.” It was Sonic’s turn to provide emotional support, clasping his younger brother’s hands. “Foster homes aren’t all bad, despite what you often hear.”

“I know,” The young fox turned his face away, “I just…don’t want them to grow-up without parents…like me…” Tails allowed a stream of tears to roll down his face.

“Hey, don’t cry, little guy.” Sonic used a gloved finger to gently stop the teardrops in their tracks, flicking them away before giving his younger brother a hug. Tails returned it as his teared ebbed, sniffing as he allowed his face to rest against Sonic’s chest.

“…what if we adopt them?” Tails looked up at the blue hedgehog, who had a surprised look on his face.

“What do you mean?” Sonic gently ceased the embrace and folded his arms once more.

“Well…you know…” The young kitsune rubbed the back of his head with his hand. “Like…just keep them?”

“I’m not sure that’s how adoption works, buddy.” Sonic placed a gloved hand on Tails’ shoulder. “But ya know what? Our place is better than a rundown alleyway, so let’s say we take ‘em home for now!”

“Right!” Tails turned back to the cardboard box, where the fox cubs still slumbered soundly. “You mind helping me out with this?” The young kitsune planted his feet beside the box and bent his knees as he attempted to find a good handhold along its bottom edge.

“Sure thing, pal!” Dashing over to the other side, Sonic reached down and dug his fingers under the box. “Ready? One, two, and…”

“Three!” They said in as and they picked up the box. While both could carry this sort of weight for short periods of time, especially in the heat of battle, they decided that sharing the load would be the safest option, especially given the precious nature of the cargo in question and the distance they had to walk.

Tails snagged his bagged hardware store supplies as he and Sonic carefully backed out of the alley and into the sidewalk beyond, turning as they stepped into the pedestrian traffic and slowly made their way back to the biplane.

* * *

**Hope you all liked the first chapter! The idea for this fic came about while chatting with users on the[r/MilesPrower Discord server](https://discord.gg/vYnKa3R) that I help moderate.**

**I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on what you’d like to see next in this fic! Unlike[ _A Prelude to Chaos Control_](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24412495), I don’t have this story thoroughly mapped out. While I have some ideas going forward, I’m going to fly by the seat of my pants for much of the ride. If you have any thoughts, suggestions, ideas, or critiques, though, feel free to drop a review or shoot me a PM on [FanFiction.net](https://www.fanfiction.net/~andtails), [Tumblr](https://andtails.tumblr.com/), or [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/user/AndTails)! My only major requirement is that it contains _all_ the fluff! UwU**

**Meanwhile, work continues on chapter 12 of _Prelude_. The spouse and I have been unexpectedly traveling a lot this past week, so I haven’t been writing as much, but I still hope to get my next chapter up by Wednesday, September 9, 2020. I’ll update my profile if I miss this deadline. **

**Anyway, hope you all enjoyed the first chapter! Expect more in the foreseeable future. :P**


	2. The Search for Baby Supplies

Weathering the weird looks from passersby along the busy sidewalks of Station Square, Sonic and Tails finally arrived at the airstrip where the Tornado 2 was parked in an otherwise empty hangar.

Setting the box gently on the ground, the brotherly duo sat on either side as they looked down at the cargo within; the five baby foxes were fast asleep, thanks to the gentle rocking from their careful strides across town. The sounds of the city’s hustle and bustle did nothing to disturb their sleep.

“Sure wish I had that shake right about now.” Tails wiped his brow as he gave his older brother a pointed look.

“Hey, what’s yours is mine, right?” The two laughed quietly as the cubs remained sound asleep. The young kitsune looked up at the cockpit of his aircraft, eyeing the backseat as he devised a plan for transporting the babies back to their shared home in the Mystic Ruins.

“Say Sonic, mind riding in the back seat this time?” Tails rubbed the back of his head. “I know you like to ride on the wings, but I wanna make sure the cubs are okay in case of turbulence.”

“No sweat!” Sonic lifted himself from the concrete floor of the hangar, offering his arm out to his younger brother, who took it gratefully as he allowed himself to be pulled up. Pushing a button on his key fob, the glass casing retracted over the seats. Bending his knees, Tails grabbed either side of the heavy box, his gloved fingers dragging against the ground as he established proper handholds. Locking his fingers in place, Tails began to spin his rotary namesakes, levitating in place before floating up to the cockpit. He gently placed the box on the back seat and collapsed in the pilot’s chair. Miraculously, the wind generated from the brief journey did nothing to wake the babies, much to Tails’ delight.

Placing himself in the front seat, Tails peered down at the ground below, giving Sonic a thumbs up as he stretched his limbs, preparing for the trip ahead.

“All right.” Tails positioned himself in his chair, fastening his seatbelt before twisting knobs and pulling levers that started the plane’s ignition sequence. As the propellers began to spin, though, Tails had a realization.

“Oh no!” Tails yelled, looking back down at the blue hedgehog below.

“What’s wrong, pal?” Sonic jumped up to the leftwing. Tails met the blue hedgehog’s concerned gaze.

“I just realized we don’t have any baby supplies at home!” The young kitsune looked back as he heard the sound of one of the cubs crying, followed by two more, which woke the fourth and fifth cubs like dominoes. “And the babies are awake, too! Oh man…”

Tails spun himself around to kneel on the front seat, balancing his chin on the headrest, watching helplessly as the children cried. Sonic joined his little brother in the front seat, peering down at the boxed cubs in the back.

“What do we do, Sonic?” Tails looked up at the blue hedgehog with concern on his face. “I could soothe maybe one or two of them, but _five_?”

“I don’t know, buddy.” Sonic ran a gloved hand through his quills. “Either way, we’ll need some supplies first.”

“Hold on a sec.” Tails pulled up his wristwatch communicator, accessing his internet browsing application. “Here we go…” The young kitsune pressed a button to display the webpage as a holographic image over his wrist. “According to _NewParents.Mobius_ , we need…some diapers, bottles, formula…”

“Formula? For what?” Sonic scratched his muzzle in confusion. “Are we makin’ something? Maybe the babies would like chili dogs?”

Tails facepalmed before dragging his hand down his face.

“You don’t know what formula is?” Tails looked up at his bigger brother in disbelief. “Even _I_ know what formula is.”

“Ahh, like those race cars? Because I’m _totally_ faster than them!”

“No, Sonic.” The young kitsune sighed. “Formula is what you give babies as a substitute for breastmilk.”

“…What’s breastmilk?” Sonic stared at Tails with a look of curiosity.

“…Never mind.” Tails flicked his gloved finger as he scrolled through the rest of the list while mumbling to himself. “I could build some cribs in my workshop no problem…let’s see…pacifiers…okay!” He powered down his communicator and turned his attention back to Sonic. “I’m ready to go!”

“But what’re we gonna do with them?” They turned back to the children, whose crying had since intensified.

“Well, I _am_ the cardholder…” Tails pulled his wallet out of his utility belt, flashing the credit card out of its sleeve for show. “I guess it _pays_ to be the one paying the bills, huh?”

Sonic groaned. “Yeah, I guess…just be quick. I’m not what they call ‘parenting material’.” He made air quotes with his fingers.

“I’m sure you’ll be _fine_.” Tails leapt out of the aircraft. “I’ll only be gone a little while! Just keep them entertained!”

“Easy for you to say…” Sonic grumbled under his breath as the young kitsune flew away. He turned his attention back to the babies. “So...ummm…hello there?” The babies stopped crying, staring at the blue hedgehog and then at one another, before wailing once more.

Sonic sighed.

_How’d I get roped into this?_

* * *

“Am I really doing this?” Tails asked himself as he approached a bustling mall in the heart of Station Square. “Am I _really_ qualified to be raising kids? After all, I _am_ still a kid…albeit one who lives independently, pays bills, and constantly battles a megalomaniac.”

Pushing through the heavy doors of the large shopping center, the young kitsune looked up to find various stores along either side of the building’s three levels. Near the center of the wide hallway stood a digital map.

“Let’s see.” The orange fox used the map’s legend near the bottom of the screen to find Babies Emporium, the one he recognized from television advertisements. “Okay, it’s number 393…” Rotating his namesakes, he flew up near the top of the display so he could get a good look at the top-most map showing the locations of the third-level stores. Swaying his body slightly to the right, he traced the guide’s path with a gloved hand.

“389…391…aha!” Tails snapped his fingers. “393! I just gotta get up to the third floor and take a right.” Setting himself back down on the tiled floor, the orange kitsune ventured on until he found himself in an open foyer with a food court along the far wall and elevators, escalators, and stairs on either side. Using his rotary namesakes once more, Tails flew up, venturing closer to the sky windows above before hoisting himself over the railing of the third floor.

“Hey mommy, can I try that!” Tails looked over to find a young Mobian skunk pointing at him with a bright smile on their face.

“No, no dear!” their mother responded. “That’s _way_ too dangerous! Besides, your tail can’t do that.”

“Ahh, maaaan.” The kid seemed a bit grumpy as the mother turned their stroller around and walked in the opposite direction.

Tails chuckled nervously as he scratched the back of his head before venturing further down the mall hallway, eventually reaching the baby supply store. Walking inside, he was greeted with a dark purple carpet and light pink walls. All sorts of childrearing supplies stuffed the various shelves with signs hanging over each aisle providing guidance to shoppers.

Grabbing a shopping basket from the entryway, the orange kitsune stepped forward.

“Hmmm…okay, so diapers should be priority number one…and number two.” Tails giggled at his light toilet humor as he strolled along, eventually finding an entire section dedicated to diapers. Each shelf stood several times higher than the short fox. He grimaced as he peered upward. 

“I guess I’ll start from the bottom.” Bending his legs, he crouched down to find various styles for the same generic diaper brand. “Hmmm…this one is for sensitive skin…this one has extra padding…this one has enhanced absorption capacities….” The fox stood up and raised his fingers to his chin. “This’ll be tougher than I thought.” He stood in thought for a few moments until an idea came to his head.

“Maybe I should seek out some advice?” Raising his wrist, he pressed a few buttons on his communicator, activating his phone application.

“Hello, Vanilla speaking,” came a motherly voice.

“Hey Vanilla! It’s Tails.” The orange kitsune did his best to sound cheerful. 

“Ah, it feels like we haven’t spoken in ages! How’ve you been? You keeping yourself nice and fed? You’re not working too hard on your projects, are you?”

“I agree! Been good…yes and nope.” The young fox was expecting these sorts of check-up questions from the closest individual he had to a mother, who provided guidance and comfort to all the heroes while raising her own daughter, Cream the Rabbit.

“Say, listen…” Tails stammered as he collected his thoughts. “…I’m…kind of…adopting some fox cubs, and I need help picking out some diapers. Mind walking me through this?”

“Ummm…” Vanilla was speechless. “Did I hear that right? That you’re adopting fox babies?”

“Yeah.” Tails waited for the motherly rabbit to reply.

“…well,” she continued after a brief pause, “what are their sizes?”

“Huh?” Tails scratched his head. “What do you mean?”

“You don’t know what size diapers they need?” Vanilla sounded concerned.

“…I suppose not. I thought they were universal.” Tails chuckled nervously as his eyes scanned the multitude of diaper offerings once more.

“What other supplies do you need?” Vanilla asked patiently, her motherly instincts entering hyperdrive.

“Well…” Tails dug into his memory to recall the list he read online. “I need formula, pacifiers, and a few other things. Why?”

“Tell you what.” Vanilla’s concern was replaced with a sense of resolve. “Get some normal fox formula, baby bottles, and pacifiers, and I’ll bring over my supply of unused diapers, baby toys, and Cream’s old clothing. How many are girls?”

“Ummm…” Tails rubbed the back of his head. “I…don’t know. I haven’t…checked yet.” The embarrassed, blushing fox could hear Vanilla’s facepalm through the speaker. Nevertheless, she kept her composure.

“I’ll gather some things and be over soon.”

“Sounds good!” Tails hung up the call, gulping as he strolled down the rest of the long aisle, turning a corner to find the formula.

_Boy I must’ve sounded like an idiot…_

* * *

Sonic sat in the backseat of the Tornado biplane, the box against his side as he held two fox cubs in either hand, resting against his chest. The other three were sleeping in their cardboard box, having tired themselves out crying for the last 20 minutes. No amount of rocking or funny faces stopped the crying; it was only after the hedgehog put two of the babies in his lap that the five started to calm down, apparently needing more space. 

“Heh…this isn’t so bad.” He looked over the seat in front of him, peering out the hangar exit. Nobody else was using this hangar, so they were able to maintain some privacy with minimal noise, to the liking of the sleepy cubs.

“It looks like they’ve been through a lot…but now their luck has turned.” Looking back down he found the child to the right attempting to climb up his shoulder, reaching for his blue quills.

“Here ya go, little guy.” Sonic bowed his head, allowing the fox cub to better climb up his shoulder. The child rubbed their hands against his head, enamored by its furriness.

“These kids are entertained by anythin’!” The energetic child crawled up to the top of Sonic’s head, pulling against his triangular ears for support as they laughed merrily.

“Hey, that hurts!” The blue hedgehog suppressed his yelps as a few tears ran down his face. He didn’t want to scare the other kids, so he did the best he could to hold in the pain.

The infant’s grip on his ears began to loosen as they wobbled forward and back, eventually using their arms to maintain balance.

“O-ooh no.” Sonic reached his hands upward, but it was too late; the baby fell forward, performing a flip before landing butt-first between the blue hedgehog’s legs. They weren’t upset, however; the child laughed while clapping their hands, seeming to enjoy the thrill.

“Whew…” Sonic wiped his brow before gazing down at the fox below, a smile on his face. “Not afraid of a lil’ adventure, are we?” Looking toward his left arm, the other child remained fast asleep, as were the three others. 

The blue hedgehog allowed himself to rest his eyes, almost falling asleep as the sound of spinning namesakes approached the biplane. A few moments later, Tails appeared, hovering over the open cockpit with two paper bags in his hands.

“You weren’t about to fall asleep, were you, Sonic?” Tails asked with a grin.

“What, me? Never!” Sonic replied, returning his smile before eyeing the supplies. The energetic child reached his hands upward, trying to grab hold of the bags floating well above him. “I was expecting more baby stuff.”

“Well,” Tails began, landing in the pilot’s seat and setting the bags down on either side of his feet, “Vanilla’s gonna bring over some more.”

“Really? That’s great!” Sonic smiled at his younger brother through the rearview mirror.

“You wanna hop on the wing, Sonic? The cubs seem fine now.” Tails began the start-up sequence once more.

“Well…” Sonic looked down at the five fox cubs in his care as the smile on his face grew wider.

“…nah, it ain’t so bad in here.”

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed the second chapter! Expect the third part to be uploaded no later than Wednesday, October 14, 2020. Meanwhile, chapter 14 of _A Prelude to Chaos Control_ will be uploaded no later than Wednesday, October 7, 2020. Check out my profile for the most up-to-date posting schedule! **

**Special thanks to the[r/MilesPrower Discord community](https://discord.gg/vYnKa3R) for offering advice and suggestions as this story evolves. **


	3. A New Home

The sun was high in the sky as Sonic and Tails flew across the glistening blue ocean below. Tails expertly maneuvered his biplane, ensuring the least amount of turbulence possible as the baby fox cubs rested in the back seat against and alongside the blue hedgehog.

Except for one.

As three of the cubs remained sleeping in their cardboard box, and another rested along Sonic’s left leg, the energetic baby of the bunch was crawling over the blue hedgehog’s large head, reaching their curious hands through his long, blue quills.

“Ahaha, that tickles!” Sonic did his best to hold back his laughter, as he didn’t want to disturb the rest of the other children, but to no avail. 

The energetic child lifted their head and removed their hands from Sonic’s quills, spinning themself around as they peered down at the giggling hedgehog below. Sonic’s looked up as he wiped away a few tears, meeting the baby’s curious gaze. The fox cub gave the hedgehog a wide smile and laughed, clapping as they rested their belly on Sonic’s head. Returning their smile with his own, the blue hedgehog reached his arms over his head and placed the fox cub against his right leg.

“You’re an energetic little fella, aren’t ya?” He gently massaged the baby’s hair, causing their ears to twitch as they clapped their hands once more.

“Almost home, Sonic.” Tails looked through the rearview mirror to watch Sonic playing with the child. He grinned. “I think you’re starting to get attached.”

“What?” Sonic met Tails’ eyes as a faint blush appeared on his face. “Am not! I was jus’ keepin’ ‘em entertained is all.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Tails chuckled as he began the biplane’s descent. “It’s okay to let your guard down around cubs, Sonic. You don’t _always_ have to look cool.”

“I know,” Sonic replied, looking down at the babies once more, “it’s just that this whole _parenting_ thing is kinda new to me, ya know?”

“It’s a whole new experience for the both of us,” Tails nodded his head, switching focus between the rearview mirror and the incoming landing strip, “but we’ll get through it together.” Tails smiled as he gave his older brother a thumbs up.

“Yeah…you’re right, Tails!” Sonic returned the orange kitsune’s smile with his own.

“As always.” Tails giggled as he retracted the landing gear. Pressing a button on the dashboard, the metal door of his workshop’s lower level opened, allowing the young fox to park within. Tails unbuckled his seat belt and twisted himself around as the cockpit’s glass casing retracted.

“I can take the box.” Tails carefully grabbed the cardboard as he hoisted himself out of the biplane, jumping out as he spun his rotary namesakes to slow his descent, allowing him to land gently on the hard floor of his workshop. Sonic jumped out as well, holding the remaining two cubs in either hand as he absorbed the impact of the fall with his bent knees.

“C’mon, Sonic.” Tails beckoned his older brother toward the door connecting the workshop with their home. “Let’s show the cubs around.”

* * *

Resting side-by-side on the sofa, Sonic and Tails watched the five cubs crawl around the large blanket they placed on the living room floor. Two of them rolled onto their backs and batted the air with their small paws, two more crawled along the surface of the cloth blanket, and the final child nibbled at the blanket’s frayed corner.

“Aren’t they cute, Sonic?” Tails looked up at his older brother, whose head rested against the sofa cushion as he watched the children with a content smile on his face.

“They _sure_ are, Tails.” He returned the young kitsune’s glance as he ran a hand through his quills.

“Hey Sonic?” Tails sounded more solemn. “Do you…have any pictures of when you were young?”

“Me?” Sonic pressed a gloved finger against his chest.

“Who else?” The two chuckled before returning to the inquiry at hand.

“…Nah, I don’t.” Sonic folded one leg over the other. “Didn’t have anyone ‘round to snap photos.”

“I suppose.” Tails stared blankly at his knees.

“You doin’ okay, bud?” Sonic placed a hand against his shoulder.

“How’d you do it?” Tails turned his head once more, glancing at the blue hedgehog as tears began to form in his eyes. “How’d you do so well without parents?”

“Oh,” Sonic looked up at the ceiling, placing his hands behind his head for extra support, “I just kinda kept on livin’ in the moment, ya know? It was so long ago, so I don’t remember my parents very well, but keepin’ my mind on the road ahead is what kept me goin’.”

Tails pushed himself closer to his older brother, pressing himself against his side as he rested his head against his shoulder.

“I just wish I had that perseverance. I…” Tails stammered as he choked back tears, “I…don’t know what I would’ve done if we hadn’t become brothers.” The young fox allowed tears to trickle down his muzzle.

“Hey buddy, there’s no need to cry.” Sonic wrapped his right arm around the orange kitsune, pulling him in closer as he used his gloved fingers to flick away the tear drops. “I’m sure you would’ve been _just_ fine if we hadn’t met. Besides,” Sonic chuckled as he ran his hands through the fox’s hair, causing his triangular ears to twitch, “we have each other now, right?” Tails looked up at the blue hedgehog before returning his gaze back to the blanket. 

“Yeah…who needs parents anyway.” Tails and Sonic laughed merrily. “We’ll make sure these cubs are not abandoned like we were.”

“You said it.” Sonic extended his hand for a fist bump, which his younger brother reciprocated.

As the two shared another laugh, the energetic cub of the litter crawled over to Sonic’s red shoes, pulling themself up using the hedgehog’s blue legs for support.

“You want up?” Sonic smiled as he reached down to pick up the fox cub. The baby snuggled up to his belly after he set them down between his legs. Sonic ran his gloved hands through the child’s hair as they got situated. 

“I think I’ll name you…” Sonic raised a gloved finger to his chin as he stared up at the ceiling for a few moments. “…Blitz. Yeah…Blitz!”

“How’d you come up with that name, Sonic?” Tails itched around the child’s right ear, which also twitched in response to his touch.

“Well, I figured they’re the most energetic of the bunch, so why not?” Sonic peered down at Blitz, who was now drooling against him. Tails chuckled as he reached over for a tissue, gently wiping the area around Blitz’s lips and Sonic’s belly. Tossing the tissue to the side, Tails continued petting the fox cub.

“Yeah…I like it, too.” Tails smiled brightly as Sonic picked up the baby.

“How about you? Do you like the name ‘Blitz’?” They laughed as they clasped their smol palms around the blue hedgehog’s arm. Sonic pulled the child closer in, allowing them to hug his belly once more. Tails happily looked on as Sonic got more comfortable, allowing Blitz to fall asleep against his belly as his own eyes began to close.

“Hmmm…” Tails thought out loud, placing a gloved finger to his chin. “I suppose we should come up with names for the rest of them, huh?” As he said this, he felt tiny hands pulling at his legs. Tails looked down to find another fox cub wanting to be with their new guardians. He reached down and placed the cub in his lap, rubbing around their ears like he did for Blitz moments ago. The baby fox didn’t relax however; they found the kitsune’s utility belt, unzipped one of the pockets, and pulled out a screwdriver.

“Woahh.” Tails was intrigued by the cub’s curious behavior. He watched as the child approached the end table next to the sofa. They proceeded to carefully, albeit wobbly, insert the proper end of the screwdriver into the head of a screw sticking out from the side and twist it counterclockwise. The fox child pulled the tool backward with the screw magnetically attached to the screwdriver’s tip. Assessing their results, they dropped the tool and merrily clapped their hands.

“Remarkable!” Tails exclaimed, carefully grabbing the fox child on either side of their waist and raising them to eye level. “A baby shouldn’t be _that_ intelligent. This is absolutely fascinating!” The child continued cheering, seeming to know that the older fox was proud of their feat. The celebration was interrupted, however, as the end table collapsed into a messy, wooden heap.

“Wha-what’s goin’ on?” Sonic asked, his eyes snapping open as he looked around for any disturbances. The cubs were so preoccupied that they were not startled by the sudden noise.

Tails picked up the screwdriver, the magnetic end still holding the screw, and held it out for Sonic to see.

“…It’s just a screwdriver.” Sonic did not seem amused.

“I know that,” Tails replied, “but it wasn’t _me_ who messed with the table.” Tails pointed to the cub on his lap, who was smiling at both of them.

“Wait,” Sonic seemed confused as he repositioned Blitz against his leg, “you’re tellin’ me that _this_ child took apart the table?”

“Well…yeah, I saw it myself.” The child looked up at the orange kitsune once more, reaching his hand toward the tool that he had taken away.

“Do you want your toy back?” Tails asked in a cute voice. The cub’s eyes seemed to grow brighter as the kitsune’s hand descended, resting the screwdriver in the palm of their hand. They grabbed the tool and twirled it around their hands, laughing merrily as they began crawling away, eyeing the end table on the opposite side of the sofa.

“Okay, junior…” Sonic grabbed the inquisitive child and gave them back to Tails.

“This…may be a problem.” Tails scratched the back of his head with his fingers as he looked down at the baby, who had since started crying. He picked the cub up and cradled them in his arms. The child’s crying was replaced with a deep yawn, and after a few more moments, the baby closed their eyes and fell asleep once more in Tails’ furry arms.

“They’re so cute.” Tails looked down at the sleeping baby with a smile on his face as an idea popped into his head.

“…Screwdriver.”

“…Huh?” Sonic looked over at the young kitsune.

“Screwdriver. Why don’t we call them ‘Screwdriver’?

“Hmmm…” Sonic put his head down and closed his eyes. “Kind of a weird name, don’t you think?”

“Not any weirder than all of our other names,” Tails replied. “You’re called Sonic because you go fast. My nickname is Tails because, well…” He fluttered his namesakes from behind. “Knuckles has big, pointy knuckles, Tangle’s tail is all tangly, Whisper is soft-spoken, Rouge is a…”

“Okay, I getcha point, Miles,” Sonic replied, chuckling to himself. “Screwdriver it is!”

“Yeah!” Tails exclaimed in a soft voice as he turned his attention back to the sleeping child in his arms. “How does that sound, Screwy?” The fox cub’s eyes were half closed, a small smile on their face as they dozed. “Well, at least he doesn’t _hate_ it.” Sonic and Tails laughed merrily, only stopping as they heard the sound of knocking at the door.

“I’ll get it,” Tails offered, planting his feet on the floor as he pulled himself up, keeping his arms cradled as to not disturb the sleeping fox cub. Tiptoeing to the front door, the orange kitsune reached for the handle without moving his arms, a feat which required careful maneuvering, before twisting it and pulling the door open, revealing a young, short, bunny; a taller, older rabbit; and a blue chao floating above them.

* * *

**I hope you all enjoyed chapter 3! Special shoutouts to[Pantalion](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4735868/Pantalion), [Mulberri](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/13531509/mulberri), [HyperSonicHedgiehog](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/13331768/HyperSonicHedgiehog), [Irritable Fabulamancer](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/14140388/Irritable-Fabulamancer), and [Xixip](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/14085091/Xixip) for the help coming up with the baby names over on the [r/milesprower](https://www.reddit.com/r/milesprower/hot/) [Discord server](https://discord.gg/vYnKa3R)! More will be unveiled in the chapters that follow. **

**Expect Chapter 4 no later than Wednesday, October 28, 2020. Meanwhile, chapter 15 of _[A Prelude to Chaos Control](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24412495) _will be posted by Wednesday, October 21, 2020.**


	4. Dirty Diapers

Tails stood at the doorway holding Screwy in his arms as he greeted Cream, Cheese, and Vanilla with a warm smile.

“Heya guys, come on in.” As the orange kitsune was about to step back for his guests to enter, however, Cream darted into the room, her pet chao floating close behind.

“Aaawwwwww.” Cream stared at the baby fox cradled against Tails’ chest, her eyes glistening in the sunlight streaming through the doorway. “They’re _sooooo_ cuuuute! Can I hold them?” The young fox watched as the young rabbit cupped her hands together as her lips formed the shape of a “w”.

“Ummm…sure?” Tails stepped forward, loosening his arms as the young bunny held out her own. Transferring Screwy to the excited rabbit, Tails smiled as Cream pulled the fox cub toward her chest and hugged them gently, rubbing her chin against their small, furry head.

“They’re so soft and cuddly I could die!” Holding onto the child a bit longer as she swayed her hips, she stopped and looked up at the kitsune, who returned her gaze with a nervous smile. “Ohhh, ummm…sorry about that. I guess I can’t help it, huh?”

“Don’t worry, Cream,” Tails replied, approaching the fox cub nestled within her arms, “I’m the same way with these babies.” He scratched around Screwy’s ears, which twitched to the touch.

“Ehhemm…”

Tails and Cream looked up at the motherly rabbit who was still standing at the doorway holding various bags.

“Ohh, I’m sorry, Vanilla! Here…” Tails approached the motherly rabbit and put his hands out, “I can take those for you.”

“Thank you, dear.” The older rabbit accepted the young fox’s offer, handing the bags over to him. She watched as he deposited them on the other side of the living room, stepping around three of the fox cubs sleeping on the blanket strewn across the floor. “I see you have a full house.”

“So it seems.” Tails chuckled as he placed a hand behind his head. “To be honest, I kinda feel out of my element here. This is all new to me.”

“And me, too!” Sonic approached his younger brother, holding Blitz in his arms as he turned his attention to the two rabbits. “How ya doin’, Cream n’ Vanilla?”

“Lovely,” Cream replied as she gently rubbed her face against Screwy’s forehead.

“Just fine,” Vanilla followed, a smile on her face as she watched Cream enjoying her time with the fox cub.

Looking around, Cream noticed the other three babies on the floor, and the fourth against Sonic’s chest. Her eyes grew wide and she gasped loudly, her excitement palpable to everyone else in the room.

“Here,” Cream swiftly but gently placed Screwdriver back into the orange kitsune’s arms as she got down on her knees and carefully observed the three kits sleeping on the blanket. “They’re so cute, I could eat them uuuuup.”

“I hope you don’t mean that _literally_ , Cream,” Sonic replied with a nervous smile. The young bunny didn’t respond, though; she was too busy watching the cubs sleep as she propped her chin in her palms, her elbows on the floor as she kicked her legs behind her and hummed gently to herself.

“What are their names?” Cream asked, looking up at the two brothers.

“Well, you see,” Tails replied with a nervous chuckle, “we’ve only managed to name two of them thus far. This one here is Screwdriver, or Screwy for short, because he likes tools and stuff.”

“And _this_ one is Blitz because he can _never_ sit still for very long.” Sonic nodded his head. “Kinda reminds me of a handsome blue hedgehog I know.”

“Pshhh,” Tails scoffed, “you wish!”

“Hey, what’s _that_ supposed to mean?” Sonic, Tails, and Cream chuckled at their brotherly banter.

“What are their genders?” Cream asked as she gazed at the sleeping cubs once more, lifting herself into a sitting position and bringing one of the cubs to her lap.

“We’ve only had ‘em for a short while,” Sonic replied, “and we haven’t exactly…checked…yet…”

“So we don’t know their assumed genders yet,” Tails continued, finishing the blue hedgehog’s trailing thoughts. “Speaking of which…” The fox contorted his face as he noticed the smell emanating from the cubs on the floor. “We haven’t changed their diapers, either. Vanilla,” Tails turned his attention to the elder rabbit, “ _please_ tell me you brought some clean pairs.”

“Why of course, dear.” Pulling out a large, unopened bag of diapers from one of the bags of supplies, she set them down on the blanket before grabbing a container of baby wipes from her stock. “All we need now is a small sheet to change them over, something you can wash easily.”

“Right.” Tails stepped into his closet, rummaging through the contents within until he found exactly what Vanilla requested: a small, thin layer of machine-washable cloth suited for the task at hand.

“All right guys, watch closely,” Vanilla grabbed one of the two remaining cubs from the blanket and placed them over the sheet, “because you two are next.” She pointed at the brothers above, who gulped at the thought.

Even though they wished to turn away, the two forced themselves to watch as Vanilla removed the soiled nappy from the fox cub, wiped them down, and applied a new diaper. Placing the used one in a nearby garbage can, she wiped her hands with a separate disinfecting wipe. “You should consider purchasing a diaper pail just for diapers. You’ll thank me later.

“Noted,” Tails replied, pinching his nose with one hand as he kept Screwy against his chest with his other arm.

“Now it’s your turn, Tails,” Vanilla gestured toward the empty spot on the floor beside her. Sonic snickered as Tails placed Screwy on the sheet and knelt on the carpet.

“Shut up, Sonic,” the orange kitsune said under his breath, “you’ll be doing this soon enough too, you know.” Pulling his attention away from his older brother, Tails sighed as he recalled the steps demonstrated by Vanilla mere moments earlier.

“Okay, so first I do this…” Tails pulled the used diaper from the sleeping baby, “and then I use the wipe…” Cleaning the baby, he finished by affixing a clean nappy to the fox cub. “All right, I did it!” Tails exclaimed, pumping his fist into the air.

“Good job, Tails,” Cream said, smiling from the couch as she held the other changed baby in her lap. 

Nodding his head, Tails finished Vanilla’s ritual, depositing the filled nappy into the pail and disinfecting his gloved hands.

“Okay, Sonic,” Tails said, looking at his older brother with a grin on his face, “it’s your turn.”

“Ohhh, well…” Sonic looked around nervously. “Wait a minute, did I just hear some Eggman robots?” He looked out the window, his eyes scanning the grass beyond.

“No, Sonic, there are _no_ Eggman robots outside.” Tails sighed. “It actually wasn’t that bad. You just gotta do it.” 

Groaning to himself, the blue hedgehog took his place on the floor, setting Blitz down on the sheet.

“Oh man, this is gross, this is gross, this is gross…” As if working in slow motion, the blue hedgehog eventually pulled the used diaper off of the fox cub. Twisting his face as a light shade of green appeared on his muzzle, Sonic cleaned the baby with a wipe and gently equipped Blitz with a fresh nappy. He deposited the used diaper into the same bin as fast as he could before thoroughly wiping his gloved hands, using multiple disinfecting wipes in the process. Eyeing each nook and cranny of his fingers until he was satisfied, he allowed himself to slide against the nearest wall as he collected his breath, his hands in his lap.

“I’ve battled many difficult Eggman robots in my day,” Sonic sighed once more, “but that…that was just terrifying.” Tails, Cream, and Vanilla laughed as Sonic looked away, not amused at all.

“Okay, so who is next?” Vanilla asked, eyeing the two remaining cubs sleeping peacefully against the blanket. “Ohh, what’s this?” The party gathered around to see Cheese snuggled up against one of the cubs, the smol fox’s arms wrapped around the chao’s blue, tubby belly.

Cream gasped, her eyes glistening at the cuteness overload before her. Pulling out her cell phone, she swiftly snapped a handful of pictures of the chao and fox from a few different angles before slipping the device back into her orange dress.

“That cub is going last,” Cream declared.

“Fair enough,” Sonic replied, rubbing his fingers through his blue quills.

Vanilla proceeded to change the fourth child’s diaper. As she finished, she gently nudged her daughter’s pet chao from his sleep.

“Wake up, Cheese,” she said in a soft voice. “We need to change this cub’s diaper.” The pet chao slowly opened their eyes, lifting themself up as they rubbed their stubby hands against their large, oval eyes. Comprehending Vanilla’s order, Cheese flew back to Cream, landing on her shoulder.

Vanilla grabbed the last cub and placed them on the changing towel. “This’ll be the last free one I do for you.”

“Understood,” Sonic and Tails replied in unison. After Vanilla finished changing this fox’s diaper, the group lined up the sleeping babies along the blanket, with Blitz on the far left, Screwdriver next to them, and the three remaining cubs following.

“Okay,” Tails began, scratching his chin with a gloved finger, “so we know Blitz is male, and Screwy is female…then the third one is female, the fourth is male, and the last is also female.”

“Hey Cream,” Sonic turned his attention to the young bunny sitting on the couch, who had since started cradling her pet chao in lieu of a baby fox cub, “wanna help us name the other three babies?”

The young bunny gasped. “Would I?!” She gently set Cheese down on the sofa before launching herself off, landing in front of the cubs below. “Hmmm…” Cream looked at the ceiling as she rubbed her chin with a gloved finger. “Let’s go with…Amanda!”

“Amanda’s a nice name!” Tails replied, matching the young rabbit’s sweet smile.

“And the fourth fox…” Cream stared at the cub intently, racking her brain for the perfect name. “…Leo…yes! Leo the Fox!” she claimed.

“You’re good at this, Cream!” Sonic gave the energetic rabbit a thumbs up, to which she responded by itching the back of her head, not unlike Tails when he’s embarrassed.

“And now the la—” Cream cut herself off as she realized the final cub had vanished. “Where’d she go?” The party looked around until they saw the remaining fox baby sitting upright, looking up at the windowsill above.

“What’s she sta—” Tails stopped as he realized what she was looking at: a recently sprouted potted plant absorbing the sun’s rays through the open window. The young fox, with a downcast face, recalling his late girlfriend’s sacrifice and the seed she left behind, mustered up the will to crawl toward the curious kit and pick her up so she could get a better view of the plant. She gazed down at the black dirt within, smelling the contents of the pot before clapping her hands merrily.

Sitting on the floor cross-legged, and placing the cub within his lap, he dried a single tear from his eye as he looked back at the party.

“…Clover.”

“Huh?” Sonic asked. “Did you say…”

“Clover.” Tails responded, with more sureness in his voice. “Our fifth cub will be named Clover.”

Sonic approached his younger brother, rustling the orange kitsune’s hair before giving him a thumbs up and a soft smile. Sniffling gently, Tails returned both gestures.

Going through the rest of Vanilla’s supplies, and some of the clothing the young fox had found at the baby store, they outfitted the five fox cubs. Blitz wore a blue shirt and khaki shorts. Screwdriver was given a yellow-orange shirt, blue jeans, and a red hair band. Tails affixed a small utility belt to Screwy’s hip, which she enjoyed most of all; she fiddled with the zippers while wearing a big smile as soon as Tails’ hands were away. Amanda wore a pink dress similar to Amy’s favorite clothing choice. Leo wore a gray shirt, black pants, and shades, looking _almost_ as fly as Shadow. Finally, Clover wore a green blouse with a white skirt.

“Well guys,” Vanilla declared, pulling herself up from the sofa, “you’ve passed the first lesson of childrearing. Now it’s on to Act 2.”

“What’s Act 2?” Tails asked nervously.

“Feeding.”

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed the fourth installment of _Tails and the Abandoned Fox Cubs_! Expect chapter 5 no later than Wednesday, November 11, 2020. **

**In other news, chapter 16 of my longfic, _[A Prelude to Chaos Control](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24412495)_ , will be released by Wednesday, November 4, 2020. **

**Once again, special shout-outs to[Pantalion](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4735868/Pantalion), [Mulberri](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/13531509/mulberri), [HyperSonicHedgiehog](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/13331768/HyperSonicHedgiehog), [Irritable Fabulamancer](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/14140388/Irritable-Fabulamancer), and [Xixip](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/14085091/Xixip) for the help coming up with the baby names over on the [r/milesprower](https://www.reddit.com/r/milesprower/hot/) [Discord server](https://discord.gg/SRycb9p)!**


	5. Lunch Time

“Feeding?” Sonic asked, raising a gloved finger to his chin. “That should be easy enough! I’m sure the cubs’ll like my patented Sonic chili dogs!”

Tails ran a gloved paw down his face.

“No, Sonic. We went over this. Babies _can’t_ have normal food.”

“Oh yeah,” Sonic ran a hand through his blue quills. “You said something about…belly milk?”

“Breast milk, yes, except I purchased formula as a substitute.” Tails opened his grocery bag and pulled out a large tub, raising it up for the blue hedgehog, two rabbits, and small chao to see. 

“Hmmm…” Sonic approached his younger brother and studied the container carefully as he rubbed his chin once more. “Seems a bit too big for a baby.”

“Well, yeah,” the orange kitsune replied, “it’s…well, maybe I’ll just show you.” Tails turned to Vanilla, who was standing near the fox cubs on the blanket. “Can you help us with the formula? I want to make sure I get it right the first time.”

“Sure, honey.” With a smile, she turned to her daughter sitting on the sofa, Cheese resting in her lap. “Please watch over the babies, okay, sweetie?”

“Sure, momma.” Nodding her head, Cream pulled herself from the sofa and sat on the floor, watching the fox cubs on the large blanket a few feet away. Blitz was gently tugging on Screwy’s tail, but she didn’t seem to notice, as she was playing with a small screwdriver from her utility belt. Amanda crawled over to Clover and rested her head against her shoulder as the green-clad fox stared up at the potted plant in the windowsill. Leo quietly observed his siblings through his fly sunglasses, his arms folded with a frown on his face.

Setting the tub on the kitchen counter, Tails unscrewed the lid, pulled the freshness-protecting wrap from the mouth of the container, and peered within to find a white powder. Joining the young kitsune by his side, Sonic grimaced at the contents within.

“Are we _really_ gonna feed our babies _that_?” The blue hedgehog folded his arms. “It just looks like powder.”

“Well, yes, Sonic,” Vanilla replied, “except you don’t just give it to the cubs directly. You dissolve it in water first.”

“Ohhh…” Sonic pondered with a finger to his muzzle. “So _this_ is what the kids’ll have with their chili dogs…”

“For the last time,” Tails responded tersely, “babies. Can’t. Have. Chili dogs. This is all they can really have for now.”

“Well,” Sonic replied, looking at the powder once more, “if that’s what we’re supposed to do, then I’ll just keep the chili dogs to myself.” The blue hedgehog stepped back from the container as Tails grabbed it and read the instructions.

“It says here to use the included scoop to transfer the powder to a bottle.” Washing the plastic tool, and drying it thoroughly, the young kitsune did as the instructions indicated, filling the scoop with the powdery substance and pouring it into one of five empty baby bottles lined up along the counter. “Next, it says to fill with water.” Grabbing the powder-filled bottle, the orange fox filled it with lukewarm water and affixed the nipple lid over it. “And finally, I just gotta shake.”

“Wait!” Vanilla reached out her hand, but it was too late; as soon as Tails began shaking the bottle, the slushy substance sprayed across his face, dampening his furry muzzle. “You need to pinch the nipple while shaking so it doesn’t get all over the place.”

Sonic burst out laughing.

“Shut up, Sonic,” Tails growled as he set the bottle down and dried himself with a kitchen towel.

“Sorry, bro, but that’s just…” With facial muscles contorting, he laughed once more, unable to hold it in. “Okay, okay…I think I’m go—” Falling to the tiled floor, the blue hedgehog rolled around as he laughed profusely.

“How mature…” Sighing to himself, Tails tried to ignore his (technically) older brother as he filled the bottle with a little more water, tightened the cap, and squeezed the nipple.

Filling his cheeks with air, Sonic laughed as he observed the young kitsune’s bottle preparation.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I just can’t even—” Stopping once more, he glanced at the orange fox before he broke down laughing again, tears pouring down his face as he bumped into the table, rolling uncontrollably.

“Well, it’s official,” Tails said to the motherly rabbit, “I think we broke him.” Turning his attention back to the bottle, he pinched the nipple lid as he shook the bottle’s contents, this time making no mess. Looking through the transparent glass container, he watched as the water began to turn white, with specks of powder floating within. A layer of the formula still rested along the bottle’s base.

“Just gotta shake it a little more…” With his tongue sticking out from the side of his mouth, the young kitsune shook the bottle once more. As he did so, the blue hedgehog pulled himself up by the tablecloth and set himself down on a chair, catching his breath from his laughing episode.

“Okay, I think I’m good…” Coughing into his arm, and wiping the tears from his eyes, he looked up at his younger brother, who had since finished preparing the bottle.

“How’d I do, Vanilla?” Tails asked, handing the container over to the elder bunny. Eyeing it carefully, she gave the kitsune a gentle nod.

“It looks good. Here, why don’t we have Sonic try now?” The two looked over at the blue hedgehog, who stood up and itched the base of his black nose.

“Should be a piece of cake.” Sonic stepped over to the counter, grabbing the scoop from the formula tub. “This can’t be as bad as changing diapers, right?” Not waiting for an answer to his rhetorical question, Sonic filled the measuring cup with powder, deposited the contents into the second empty bottle, and filled it with water. Twisting the lid on, he hesitated, blushing slightly as he pinched the nipple.

Tails snickered from the kitchen table, placing his palm over his mouth to muffle his chuckles.

“Oh, you little hypocrite…” Sonic said under his breath as he shook the bottle. Looking inside, Sonic nodded to himself with a satisfied grin on his face. “Looks pretty mixed to me. Take a look, Tails.” Lifting himself from his chair, the orange fox carefully observed the bottle’s contents.

“Looks good, Sonic.” Tails gave him a thumbs up, which he returned in-kind.

“Now you just have to fill the remaining bottles, and then I can show you how to feed the babies,” Vanilla said. “I’m going to go check on Cream. Just holler if you need anything!”

“Will do!” Sonic and Tails replied in unison. The brothers proceeded to prepare the remaining bottles, with Tails filling them with powder and Sonic adding water and shaking them up.

“What do ya think, pal?” Sonic asked, patting his younger brother’s shoulder as they admired their handiwork: a set of five bottles perfectly prepared for the hungry kits.

“I think we’re ready!” Tails returned Sonic’s smile with his own.

Grabbing the bottles, the brotherly duo returned to the living room and sat down on the blanket next to the fox cubs. Tails grabbed Clover as Sonic grabbed Amanda, who was still resting along her shoulder. Clover started crying, upset that she could no longer observe the plant on the windowsill.

“What do we do now, Vanilla?” Tails asked, cradling Clover in his arms as he looked up at the rabbit sitting on the sofa while Cream played with Leo on the other side of the blanket.

“Grab the bottle with your right hand and slowly tip it toward the cub’s mouth,” Vanilla replied. Tails did as he was told, being careful to prevent the formula from dripping from the nipple spout. “Next, slowly place it inside her mouth. Allow her to get accustomed to it.”

“Got it.” Sticking his tongue out the side of his mouth, the young kitsune carefully brought the spout toward the baby’s face. Clover stopped crying and sniffed it before slightly opening her mouth. Closing her eyes, she drank the formula as she wrapped her smol arms around the bottle.

Tails smiled, keeping the bottle steady from its base while watching the fox cub enjoy her meal.

“This wasn’t bad at all.” Tails gently pulled the bottle away once Clover stopped drinking.

“Now you just have to burp the baby,” Vanilla said, looking down at the perplexed kitsune from the sofa

“Burp the baby? What does that mean?”

“You see,” Vanilla clarified, “babies get upset when they become gassy, and it’s difficult for them to burp on their own, so we can help them burp. It’s actually really easy.” Vanilla used her hands to demonstrate. “First, place the cub on your leg so her back is facing you.”

“Okay.” He picked Clover up and positioned her on his left leg.

“Now gently pat her upper back while keeping her upright with your other hand. Do this until she burps or seems uncomfortable. Even if you can’t get her to burp, it’s still worth trying.”

“All right.” The elder fox gently grabbed Clover’s left leg as he began patting her back with his right palm.

“You can pat a little harder if you’d like,” Vanilla suggested. “These cubs are tougher than they look, you know.” Focusing intently on the child’s back, he increased his force and continued patting for about 20 more seconds until he heard Clover gently burp. He also felt something liquid splash over his furry leg.

“What was…” Tails peered over Clover’s triangular ears to find some spit-up along his leg. “Ewww, gross!” Contorting his face, he waited for Vanilla to retrieve a wet cloth and clean the mess from his fur. “Thanks,” Tails said, a small blush covering his face.

“At least you don’t have to worry about staining an outfit,” Vanilla replied with a smile. “Whenever you’re feeding or burping a baby, _always_ have a wipe on-hand in case of any spills or spit-ups.”

“Noted.” Tails returned Clover to a cradled position in his arms.

“Ready to give it a try, Sonic?” Vanilla asked as the party turned their attention to the blue hedgehog.

“Let’s give it a shot!” Grabbing a full bottle from his side, he cradled Amanda before gently nudging the formula toward her face. She latched onto the nipple without fuss and began drinking, closing her eyes as she grabbed hold of the bottle with her hands. Like Tails, the blue hedgehog held the bottle along its base to ensure it remained stable.

“Not bad at all! Much more fun than changing diapers, that’s for sure!” The party chuckled as Amanda finished her meal, pulling her lips away from the spout before the blue hedgehog placed the bottle back on the floor. “Now I just gotta burp ya…” Gently placing the fox cub on his right leg, he kept her stable with his left hand as he burped her with his right. It only took 10 seconds for this kit to burp.

He nervously looked over the baby’s head. “Phew, no spit up…”

“Good job, Sonic!” Vanilla said, picking Blitz up from the blanket before turning her attention to her own daughter. “Want to feed Screwy for us?”

“Do I?” Cream’s face lit up as she pulled the fox cub toward her lap. Vanilla sat on the sofa, cradling Blitz in her arms. The two rabbits proceeded to feed the cubs.

“And that just leaves Leo…” Tails placed the fox between his legs. He kept his arms folded like a gangster as he continued observing the rest of the living room through his shades. “All right, Leo, it’s your turn.” Reaching for the remaining bottle, the orange kitsune tipped it toward the cub, who leaned back against Tails’ slightly-chonky belly as he reached his head up, drinking from the spout while grabbing hold of the bottle with his hands. Miles kept the bottle stable from the base as he looked at the clock from across the room.

“Gosh, the daylight’s burning away, and I still haven’t built their cribs yet!” Tails exclaimed as he lifted himself up and gently placed Leo along Sonic’s free leg. “I’ll be in my workshop! C’ya!” He waved back as he ran to the adjourning garage.

“It’s time for us to get going too, Cream,” Vanilla said as she finished burping Blitz.

“Okay, momma.” The rabbits gently placed the cubs on the carpet.

“Just give us a call if you need anything, Sonic,” Vanilla said as she approached the door, Cream and Cheese following.

“It was nice playing with the fox cubs,” Cream said as she stepped through the front door. “We’ll be back soon!” the visitors left before Sonic could say goodbye.

Smiling at the children in his lap, he pulled himself up, gently placed Amanda and Leo on the blanket next to their siblings, and sat on the sofa, watching the five children crawl around. Yawning into a gloved hand, he reached for the remote and turned on the television before placing his hands behind his head and slouching back. 

“This parentin’ stuff’s hard work! I think I deserve some R&R.” As he got himself comfortable, however, his face contorted as his nose detected a foul odor coming from the fox cubs below.

“Ah geez. Not again!”


	6. The Secret Mission

“I think that’s all of ‘em!” Sonic carried Leo and Screwy in either arm into the spare bedroom, which now housed five freshly built cribs. Clover, Amanda, and Blitz were already sleeping in their beds as Tails watched over them with a smile on his face. The blue hedgehog carefully deposited the two remaining cubs into their cribs along the far wall.

“So, what do you think of my handiwork?” Tails swept his arm around the room.

“These cribs look great!” Sonic rustled the young fox’s hair. “And you got them done at supersonic speed, too! I’m proud of ya!”

“Thanks, Sonic.” Giving each other a gentle high five, soft enough to prevent the kids from waking up, the brotherly duo left the bedroom, closing the door and shutting off the light behind them.

* * *

Opening his eyes, Leo the Fox pulled himself up, a furrowed brow over his determined eyes. Crawling around the perimeter of his crib, he squealed in delight as he spotted Screwy’s screwdriver lying at the edge of her crib, close enough for the mischievous fox to reach from his own bed. Grabbing the tool by the handle, he pulled it back and analyzed it with a grin before turning to the crib’s door. 

Looking up at the door separating him from freedom, Leo’s tongue jutted out from the side of his mouth as he gripped the tool, slowly raising it up along the outer edge of the door until its tip collided with the metal hook keeping the door locked. Clenching his teeth, the fox cub pushed the tool up a bit more, unlatching the lock.

Dropping the screwdriver, he pushed the door forward and peered down at the floor below. Leo carefully dangled from the edge before loosening his grip and dropping to the carpeting below.

Looking around the immediate area, he spotted his black pants and grey shirt folded neatly by one of the crib’s supporting legs, with his sunglasses resting on top. Leo crawled over to his belongings and slipped on his clothing. Putting on his fly specs, he smirked as he slowly lifted himself up, wobbling his arms to maintain balance. He only recently learned to walk, after all.

Creeping over to the bedroom door, he placed a gloved finger against his chin as he contemplated his next step; he was too short to reach the doorknob, and he didn’t have the strength to push a climbable object over to the handle.

“Wait,” Leo said to himself, speaking in the mystical, unintelligible language of _baby_. He looked up at the bookshelf sitting next to the door. Each level was short enough for the fox cub to reach, and there was more than enough space between the edge of the shelves and the books that filled them for him to comfortably grip them with his paws. “Bingo.” With a grin on his face, he meticulously climbed up the shelves.

Pulling himself up and wobbling for balance once more, Leo eyed the handle as he tiptoed toward the edge of the bookcase. Reaching his arms out, he grasped at the circular handle with his smol hands before attempting to turn it clockwise. While doing so, his feet slipped from the edge of the shelf, dangling from the handle with a single hand. Thankfully, by pressing his feet against the adjoining wall and spinning the knob, he was able to open the door a crack. 

With a sigh, Leo extended his arm back out to the side of the bookshelf. Grabbing hold, he shimmied around the bookshelf’s corner and climbed down.

“Whew…” Leo wiped his brow as he faced the door, through which a flickering light streamed into the bedroom. “So far, so good.” He pulled the door open gently, creating just enough of a gap to slide his way between, leaving his siblings to sleep in peace once more.

But Amanda, whose crib was closest to the door, watched the entire escape from her wooden prison.

“B...brother…”

* * *

Leo stood at the top of the stairs overlooking the open concept living room comprising most of the main floor. The cub noticed Sonic sleeping in a sitting position, his legs reclined over his footrest, as Tails occupied the rest of the couch, his head resting against the blue hedgehog’s leg and his torso covered by his makeshift namesake blankets. The light from the flickering television was all that illuminated the dark living room.

The baby fox carefully climbed down each stair, repeatedly checking on the sleeping brothers for any sign of consciousness. Halfway down, the stair creaked, forcing Leo to freeze in place as he heard the elder fox roll over from below.

“No Sonic…that’s my…mint candy…” Tails continued sleeping, his chest rising and falling with each snore.

Wiping his brow once more, the cub made his way to the first floor, tiptoeing across the living room before eventually finding himself in the kitchen. Looking around, he eyed a dark object on the counter.

“Target acquired.” Leo began his ascent, using the lower cupboards for footing as he climbed the treacherous surface, victory so close he could taste it. “Almost…there…” Gripping his paw against the edge of the counter, he began pulling himself up, only to fall back moments later after realizing the surface he grabbed was really a cutting board.

“Woahhh!” Instead of landing on a hard surface, however, he fell against a small pillow of floof, or at least that’s what it felt like to the confused cub. Turning around after shaking himself off, he nearly squealed.

“Amanda? What are _you_ doing here?” He reached an arm out to his red-clad sister, who gratefully accepted it.

“Seeing where you were going, dummy,” she replied. “What’re _you_ doing here?”

“…I’m afraid that information is classified.” Leo folded his arms and turned away.

“W…what are you talking about?” Amanda asked, raising a concerned hand close to her lower lip, her tail drooping against the tiled floor.

“It’s a _secret_.” The fly fox wagged his finger at his sister. “That means I can’t tell you.”

“Says who?” She placed her hands against her hips in annoyance.

“I’m not at liberty to say.” Leo approached the cupboards once more.

“If you’re not gonna tell me, I’m gonna tell Dad n’ Papa!”

“ _Nani_?!” The dark-clothed fox turned around, his tail flickering from behind.

“You heard me.” She folded her arms and turned away. “If you take me along, we can keep this secret between you and me. Deal?” With a smile, the manipulative vixen extended her arm out. Leo groaned.

“Okay, _fine_.” He begrudgingly shook her hand. “You can come with…just _don’t_ get in my way.”

“Okay!” She raised a fist to the air in determination, a smile covering her furry muzzle. Her brother sighed as he found a solid foothold against the lower cupboard once more. Making his way to the top, he pulled himself up from the counter’s edge and stood up, peering across the horizon of kitchen appliances, dirty dishes, cream-colored walls, and brown cupboards.

“Your turn!” Leo called from above.

“How do you expect me to climb up _that_?” She pointed to the drawer handles her brother scaled moments ago.

“I dunno…just, climb?” He ran a hand across his triangular ears in frustration. “Maybe you should just go to bed.”

“But I wanna come with you!” She exclaimed, stomping her foot.

“What do you want me to do, _lift_ you up here?”

“…yeah…” She gave her brother glistening puppy dog eyes from below.

“Out of the question.” He turned his head away as he folded his arms. “You’re already a mission liability as it is. You should be back in your crib sucking on your pacifier.”

“Oh really?” A smirk crossed her face before breathing in.

“Oh no you don’t!” Leo hissed, knowing exactly what Amanda was about to do. Predicting correctly, she started wailing on the floor, crying loudly enough to surely wake their adoptive dads.

“No, no, no, no, I didn’t mean it. Here!” Leo dropped to the floor and placed his back against the cupboard, bending his knees slightly. “Climb up my shoulders.”

“Okay!” Having stopped crying, she planted her feet against Leo’s shoulders as her brother straightened out his back, giving her enough of a boost to make the climb much easier. After pulling herself up to the countertop surface, Leo climbed up by himself once more, joining his sister in the world beyond. 

“So, what are we looking for?”

“This.” Leo pointed to a clay jar sitting against the wall near the corner of the cupboards.

“What is it?” she asked, feeling the lid with her palm.

“I don’t know, but legend has it that an unimaginable gift lies within.”

“Woah…” She stood transfixed, staring at the jar before turning back to her brother. “Wait, what does that mean?”

Leo shrugged.

“It just sounds cool. Besides,” a smirk grew over his muzzle, “we’re always told _not_ to go in here, so why not?”

“You mean…” Amanda stepped back, her legs shaking as an unquestionable thought entered her mind. “…breaking the rules?”

“Oh, relax.” Her brother waved his arms as if to dismiss her concerns. “How can we get in trouble? We’re one.”

The red-clad fox raised a delicate finger to her furry chin. “You have a point…okay, let’s do it!”

The two stood transfixed over the jar, frozen in anticipation for what was to come. A few moments later, Leo wrapped his smol hand around the circular lid protruding from the top and slowly lifted it. Setting it down, Leo and Amanda peered down at what lay within before reaching their hands inside and pulling out large cookies.

“Are these…” Amanda raised the disk to her nose to give it a good sniff. “…choccy chip cookies?” Leo emulated her motions, taking a long drag of his own before crunching at the edge. Chewing thoughtfully, his face suddenly filled with delight, as if a rainbow pierced his black-hued heart.

“Oh my gosh, you’ve _gotta_ try it, ‘Manda!” He performed a happy dance, spinning the cookie as he twirled himself about. Shrugging to herself, she took a nibble. As with Leo, her face lit up like a bolt of lightning. Giddiness grew inside her as she danced alongside her partner in mischief. 

“This is the best thing _ever_!” they exclaimed, dropping their cookies as they clasped hands, twirling around in circles.

“We’ve gotta have moar!” Leo proclaimed, picking up his cookie and turning toward the kitchen counter wall.

“Me too!” She sat next to him as they chowed down on their delightful morsels.

* * *

The orange kitsune slowly unfurled his namesakes as he stretched his arms and legs out across the sofa. Yawning loudly, he looked up at the blue hedgehog above him, still sleeping after a long night of childrearing.

“Hey.” Tails reached his hand up and poked Sonic’s peach-colored muzzle. “Wakey, wakey.”

“H…huh?” Sonic opened his eyes to be greeted by the prodding gloved finger of his younger brother.

“Gotta wake up. We need to feed the babies.”

“Again?” Sonic groaned to himself as the young fox pulled himself up.

“Well yeah, they kinda need food to survive.”

“I suppose…” Yawning into his palm, the blue hedgehog stepped into the kitchen and activated the coffee maker. He watched as the hot, brown water dripped into a mug labeled “The Fastest Thing Alive” before catching an oddity out of the corner of his eye. Turning his head, he gasped at the sight of Amanda and Leo sleeping against the counter wall, their shoulders leaning against each other and a half-eaten cookie in their respective laps.

“Hey Tails!” Sonic yelled. “Come check this out.”

“Coming, Sonic!” Tails entered the kitchen. “What’s the—” he cut himself off and placed a palm against his mouth. “What are _they_ doing here?”

“You tell me.” Sonic shrugged. “How’d they escape their cribs?”

“One thing’s for sure.” Tails stood over the two younglings as they slowly opened their eyes. “It _won’t_ happen again.”

“We’re busteeeeed,” Amanda said to Leo. To their parents, however, it came out as unintelligible, adorable baby talk.

“It looks like _you’re_ goin’ _downtown_ ,” Sonic jeered as the orange kitsune reached his hands out, the cookies falling from their laps as the smol foxes were lifted from the counter and cradled in Tails’ arms. Giggling, Amanda and Leo gave each other a fist bump across Tails’ chest, unbeknownst to the elder fox above.

“Mission accomplished.”

* * *

 **I hope you all enjoyed the sixth installment of** [ **_Tails and the Abandoned Fox Cubs_ ** ](https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13688866/1/Tails-and-the-Abandoned-Fox-Cubs) **! Making the babies talk really added a new layer of depth for me to explore, so I hope it was a good change of pace!**

 **Special shoutouts to**[ **Irritable Fabulamancer**](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/14140388/Irritable-Fabulamancer) **,**[ **Leodragon678**](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/11029183/Leodragon678) **,**[ **Mulberri**](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/13531509/mulberri) **, and[Guardian of 2fort](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/14407897/) over on the **[**r/MilesPrower**](https://www.reddit.com/r/milesprower/hot/) [**Discord server**](https://discord.gg/SRycb9p) **for their ideas, suggestions, and encouragement!**

 **Next up is a oneshot I’ve been crafting at the urging of fellow members of the aforementioned server, followed by chapter 18 of** [ **_A Prelude to Chaos Control_ ** ](https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13596115/1/A-Prelude-to-Chaos-Control) **.**

**See ya next time!**


	7. The Flying Foxes

Resting his back against a creeper low to the ground, Tails was meticulously making repairs to the Tornado biplane. A multitool in one gloved hand, and the other pushing away some loose wires, the orange kitsune was diagnosing an issue with the aircraft. Catching a loose screw, he tightened his grip against it and shifted his arm to the side, sticking his hand out from under the plane.

As he opened his palm, a smaller set of hands reached out to grab it. The fox cub eyed the piece in wonder, flipping it between her fingers with wide eyes.

“Rag.” Tails opened and closed his palm in succession. “Hurry, some oil’s spilling out.” Black sludge was running between the kitsune’s eyes and approaching his furry muzzle.

“Right,” Screwy replied in baby speak as she nodded her head. Placing the screw on the floor, the single-tailed fox handed her adoptive father a fresh white rag.

“Thanks.” Tails wiped the oily substance from his face before it managed to reach his nose, leaving a black streak reminiscent of a soldier attempting camouflage in a jungle warzone. Another drop replaced what was smeared away seconds earlier. “Gotta fix this quick…” Tails threw the used cloth to his side, caught by the waiting hands of Screwdriver who fetched him a new one.

Returning with a new rag, she crawled down to hand it to the elder fox.

“Hey, you’re a pretty neat apprentice!” Tails gave the baby fox a thumbs up with his free hand as he grabbed the new cloth with the other, wiping the drops from his face before finishing his work. Screwy giggled, placing her fingers below her lip as she laughed.

“Welp,” Tails rolled himself out from under the biplane, wiping his dirty gloves together before pulling himself up, “I think that’s a job well done. What do you think, Screwy?”

“You did great, Dad!” she replied, balling her fists in excitement.

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.” Tails rubbed the back of his head with a dirty hand. Immediately realizing his mistake, he slowly pulled it back, inadvertently tracing his fingers across his floofy, triangular ears and back down his face. Looking at himself in a nearby mirror, he laughed at himself, with Screwy giggling alongside him.

“Man, do I need a shower!” Tails picked up the cub, cradling her in his arms.

“Dah.” Screwdriver pointed over the elder fox’s shoulder.

“What’s that?” Tails spun himself around before looking back down at his daughter, whose finger was pointed at the Tornado. “You interested in the plane?”

She clapped her hands and giggled profusely.

“Then let’s go!” The orange kitsune lifted Screwdriver up over his head and pointed her forward, holding the cub by her hips. “Now what noise does the biplane make?”

“Brrrrrrrmmmmm!” She yelled, sticking her arms out like superwoman.

“Very good!” Tails began jogging around the spacious workshop, electing to take a roundabout path instead of a straight shot to the aircraft, spinning in circles and diverting from his path in random directions for maximum suspense.

“Uh-oh, looks like we’re experiencing some _turbulence_.” Tails slowed himself down as he gently shook the cub. “Gotta be careful now! Flying in inclement weather can be treacherous.” Sticking a tongue out the side of her mouth, she positioned her hands in front of her face, grabbing hold of a fake yoke to steady the make-believe plane.

“Shzoooeeeeem!” The orange kitsune swooped Screwy downward before returning to normal altitude, no longer shaking the child above him. “You made it, Screwy! We’re almost at our destination!”

“Yay!” Screwdriver waved her arms forward, still maintaining her superwoman pose as the elder fox below approached the side of the Tornado. The cub placed her palm against the sleek metal side of the plane, staring up above in wonder.

“You like Daddy’s plane?” Tails asked as he brought Screwy back down to a cradled position within his arms and against his chest. Twisting herself around, she pointed her index finger to the cockpit. “You want up?”

“Yeah!” She clapped merrily at the offer. While Tails couldn’t understand her baby speak, he knew full well what she wanted.

“Okay!” Tails nodded his head. “Let’s head on up.” Pressing a button on the wireless key stored in his hammerspace, he gripped the fox cub tight against his chest before spinning his namesakes, lifting them to the cockpit above. Halting his tails just as he was hovering over the pilot’s chair, the orange kitsune landed in his seat, Screwy snug against his chest floof.

Tails lifted Screwdriver so she could get a better look. The cub observed the plane’s complex dashboard. Her eyes sparkling in excitement, and a wide smile appearing on her face, as she reached for the controls. A moment before she could press a button, however, Tails pulled her back.

“I’m afraid you can’t actually _fly_ this thing,” Tails said in a warm voice, peering down at the fox below. She slowly spun herself around, a contorted look of betrayal across her face. “Don’t worry, Screwy,” Tails laughed nervously, “I promise to teach you how to pilot this baby once you’re older. Deal?”

Screwdriver wasn’t having it.

The young cub started crying in Tails’ lap, flailing her arms and legs as tears poured down her face.

“Ah geez.” Tails groaned as he cradled the cub in his arms, hoping this would help her forget about the stunning realization that a baby who was hardly able to stand on her own two feet wouldn’t be allowed to fly an aircraft. While Screwy did stop crying, she also folded her arms and look away with a _humph_.

“Giving me the silent treatment now?” Screwy simply turned her head the other way, all but ignoring her father as she kept her eyes closed and cheeks puffed out. Pondering the situation, Tails came up with a plan.

“Okay, Screwy, _you win_.” She slowly opened her eyes and turned her face back to Tails. “You can play around with the dashboard.” A smile began to form across her face. “I’ll even bring you closer.” Reaching for the adjuster bar on the side of his seat, he pulled them forward several inches so they were closer to the yoke. For added measure, Tails wrapped either namesake around the cub’s waist, lifting her up for a better view.

“How’s _that_?” Tails had a satisfied smirk on his face as Screwy squealed in joy.

Cracking her knuckles, the fox cub started expertly pressing buttons, pulling levers, and twisting knobs, a sight that, to a layperson, would’ve looked like a baby messing with the dashboard randomly, but the kitsune biplane expert was stunned, his facial muscles frozen as a single sweat droplet rolled down the side of his face.

“Un…unbelievable.” His lips quivered as his daughter found the button for the large garage door. “Is this…for real?” He didn’t need to ponder further; with a roar of the engine, the Tornado’s propellers began spinning, and the biplane started rolling forward.

“Wait! You can’t pilot this thing! You’re too _young_.” Screwy looked back at her father with a serious expression, all but communicating to the orange kitsune that everything would be fine.

“Okay, Screwy,” Tails nodded his head, a warm smile on his face, “I trust you. I’ll be right here in case things go south.” Screwy gave her dad a thumbs up before turning her attention back to the path ahead, rolling the biplane out of the garage and down the runway lined with artificial palm trees. Pulling the yoke back, she lifted the biplane off the ground before retracting the landing gear.

Save for some height assistance from her dad, Screwdriver single-handedly took flight, likely breaking some sort of world record.

“Wow,” Tails scratched the back of his head once more, still holding his daughter up with his ambidextrous namesake tips, “you really _are_ special, huh?” She clapped and giggled, eyeing the blue sky all around while ensuring a smooth ride with little turbulence.

The elder fox allowed himself to slouch back, his namesakes doing the heavy lifting as he put his hands behind his head, looking up at the sky above through the glass casing protecting them from the elements.

“Isn’t this great, Screwdriver?”

“Huh?” She peered back at her dad with wide eyes.

“Flying makes me feel so… _free_. It’s… _rejuvenating_. When I’m high in the sky, I feel _invisible_.” Screwy giggled as she brought her attention back to the controls. “I don’t know how you’re able to fly so well, but one thing’s for certain: you are gifted, and I want to nourish your gift as much as I can.”

“It’s settled,” Tails continued, straightening his back against the seat, “when you’re a little older, we’ll build you your _own_ biplane.” Screwy swung her head around, her pupils forming into hearts as her mouth stayed poggered. “Maybe we can even have a race.” Tails _oofed_ at the force of the young cub launching herself against his belly, giving him a tight hug.

“Thank you,” Screwy said in baby speak, “you’re the best daddy I could ever ask for.” She rubbed her furry muzzle against Tails’ fluffy belly as her hands rested around his waist. Tails peered down, a warm smile on his own face as he ran an oily hand across the prodigious fox cub’s hair, inadvertently covering her with grease. Of course, as a mechanic’s apprentice, she didn’t mind it at all.

Their father-daughter moment was abruptly cut short as the Tornado took a nosedive toward the ocean below; Screwdriver, in her excitement, forgot to activate auto-pilot.

“Oh no!” Tails set the younger fox in his lap and reached for the yoke, pulling it back as fast as he could. The biplane started leveling off, but the water was rapidly closing in.

“Just…a little bit…more!” Tails struggled to say as he pulled back harder. The unphased Screwdriver stood up and helped pull the wheel back, wrapping her smol paws around it in her attempt to help, at least marginally. Both clenching their teeth, and pulling as hard as they could, the Tornado swooped back up just in the nick of time, the aircraft within feet of crashing into the ocean.

After pushing the yoke forward a bit, allowing the plane to level off once more, he slouched back in his seat, wiped the sweat from his brow, and sighed heavily.

“Well, that was a close one.” Perhaps due to residual nervousness or from surviving their near-death experience, the two started chuckling together, the younger hugging her father once more.

“All right, kiddo. I think it’s time we take you home. You wanna see your brothers and sisters?”

“Yeah!”

“You wanna see Sonic?”

“Yeah! Papa!” She yelled louder.

“It’s settled.” Smiling widely, Tails turned the Tornado around and flew back to their abode.

* * *

“Hey guys, dinner is—” Sonic peered around the seemingly empty workshop, his apron swaying with him as he scanned the area, unable to find anyone from the entranceway. “That’s strange.” Taking a few steps into the garage, he found his younger brother’s Tornado biplanes parked in their normal spots along the wall. “If Tails didn’t fly off somewhere, then where would he be?” Stepping forward a few more paces, his sneaker caught something that was both fluffy and tubby. “Huh?” Pulling his foot back slightly, Sonic found the orange kitsune sleeping below, the tip of his shoe leaving an imprint in Miles’ chonky belly floof. The force of the impact, however, wasn’t hard enough to wake the tired kitsune.

Bending his knees, Sonic peered down to get a better look at his younger brother. Tails’ arms and legs were spread out like a snow angel, and blue schematics covered his face like a blanket. Light snoring could be heard below, his chest rhythmically rising and falling. 

“If Tails is sleeping,” Sonic wondered out loud, “where is Screwy?” Stepping over the tired fox, he didn’t have to look far. His jaw dropped when he found her. 

“Screwdriver…what is this?”


	8. Grand Theft Biplane

Sonic slowly stepped closer, rubbing his eyes to confirm what he was seeing was real. The blue hedgehog witnessed the prodigious fox cub welding metal together, finishing off the frame of a small biplane custom built by Screwy herself. Pulling up her mask, she turned to her papa and waved, giggling with a smile on her oil-smeared face.

“Ummm…hey?” Sonic nervously waved back. Screwy returned to work, pulling her mask back over her face before making a few final welds and checking the engine.

The blue hedgehog stepped forward, extending his hand.

“Ya sure it’s safe to be usin’ such dangerous equipment?”

Screwy pulled the welder away with a frown, shaking her head with puffed out cheeks.

“Oh, okay then…” Sonic placed a palm against his face with a groan. “What do I do now?” Turning around, he approached the two-tailed fox, sleeping peacefully on the hard floor of the workshop.

“Hey, Tails…” The blue blur knelt down and poked his pudgy belly with a gloved finger. “We’ve got a bit of a situation here.”

“No, Sonic…those are… _my_ mints…” Tails rolled over, curling up with his twin namesakes as he spoke in his sleep.

“All right, Tails,” the blue hedgehog sighed as he knelt down to his younger brother’s hip, “you forced my hand.” Taking in a deep breath, Sonic blew a raspberry against Tails’ furry skin. The young kitsune’s eyes instantly shot open as he rolled backward and landed on his feet, blushing profusely.

“What was _that_ for?!” Tails exclaimed as he balled his fists, leaning forward slightly with puffed out cheeks.

“I had no other choice!” Sonic replied, chuckling as he pulled himself up. “I had to get you up somehow. You know what Screwy’s been up to?” Tails put a gloved finger to his chin.

“Last time I checked, we were drinking some mint tea when I sorta…passed out.” The orange fox itched the back of his head. “Where is she anyway?”

As soon as he asked, the brotherly duo heard the sound of an engine roaring to life. Stepping around the Tornado 1, they watched in amazement as Screwdriver was running through a mental checklist, twisting knobs and pulling levers on the small dashboard of her tiny biplane. Pulling a pair of steampunk goggles over her eyes, she smirked as she put her smol hands on the yoke.

“You don’t think she’s…” Sonic stood still, almost at a loss for words. “…she’s gonna…take off…do you?”

“Incredible.” Tails’ mouth was agape. “When I was her age, I could never have imagined actually _building_ my own plane. This kiddo’s truly something special.” Lost in thought, he squeaked as Sonic dove against him, pushing them out of the away as Screwdriver drove the plane out from its parking spot between Tails’ own aircrafts and began rolling down the long workshop, making her way to the adjoining landing strip.

“Screwy!” Tails and Sonic yelled, simultaneously spindashing toward the aircraft. Before the two could reach the airstrip, however, the plane was already in the air. Screwdriver had left her fathers behind. 

“Dang it!” Sonic yelled as he snapped his fingers. “We gotta go after her!”

“I’ll start up the Tornado 2, and you gather up the kids.” Tails pointed to their shared abode.

“Right.” Nodding his head, the blue hedgehog sped back into the house, returning moments later with Leo, Blitz, Clover, and Amanda, two curled up in either arm. The cubs were confused, wondering why they were pried away from their afternoon cartoons by their papa, but they rolled with it.

Sonic scaled the Tornado with a few jumps, landing in the backseat and gently placing the babies on either side.

“All right, kiddos,” Tails greeted, spinning around from the pilot’s seat with a smile on his face. He was clearly suppressing his anxiety in the hopes he wouldn’t stress out the cubs. “Who’s ready for a little field trip?”

“Me! I am! Meeee!” Replied the fox cubs in baby speak as they raised their arms high in the air.

“Then let’s get this show in the road!” With a wink, the orange kitsune spun himself back around and began rolling his aircraft out of the workshop.

“Where d’ya think we’re goin’?” Blitz asked Leo to his right.

“Pshh, who cares.” Leo scoffed and folded his arms, looking out the window with an apathetic expression. Shaking his head, Blitz peered over at the girls across from Sonic’s legs. “Ya know where we’re goin’?”

“I don’t know!” Amanda replied, a smile on her face. “I love surprises, though!”

“Indeed,” Clover added in a soft voice, straightening her green blouse, “I look forward to this family outing.”

“You said it, sis!” Blitz replied with a thumbs up before resting his back against the seat, placing his hands behind his head not unlike the blue hedgehog next to him.

“Say,” Clover looked around the back seat of the Tornado, “where’s Screwy?” Blitz and Amanda looked at each other before returning her gaze with a shrug.

“Who cares.” The three turned their attention to the edgy fox in the corner, who slouched against his seat and closed his eyes.

“That’s kinda harsh, brah,” Blitz nudged him with a playful fist against his shoulder, which was caught by Leo’s crushing palm

“ _N-nani_?” Blitz tried to pull his arm away, but Leo tightened his hold.

“You listen here, _baka_ ,” Leo scoffed, “ _nobody_ messes with me. Got that?” He swatted his arm away.

“Geez.” Blitz grasped his smol wrist and examined his tiny fingers. “Has anyone ever told you to chillax, dude?”

“Hmph…” Folding his arms, Leo peered out the window once more with an apathetic gaze.

“Now, now boys,” Sonic patted Blitz on the head, who responded with a warm smile, before doing the same for Leo, who grimaced at the affection, “no need to fight in such a cramped space. You can duke it out when we’re on the ground.”

“Sonic!” Tails exclaimed from the pilot’s seat, giving him a glare through the rearview mirror.

“What?” Sonic shrugged his shoulders. “Bros can tussle. It’s only natural. How else are they supposed to build character?”

“No way,” Tails replied as he shook his head, “in our household, we talk _through_ our differences.”

“ _Boring_!” Sonic smirked as he nudged Blitz from his right. “Am I right?” Blitz laughed, smiled, and nodded back at him. “Way to go m’ lil’ champ!” Sonic presented his palm, and the cool fox cub slapped his own against, giving his papa a low five.

“ _Sonic_ …” Tails puffed out his cheeks once more, not amused in the slightest.

“All right, _fine_.” Sonic wrapped his arms around the four cubs, pulling them in closer. “Remember kiddos, Sonic sez you should _only_ use violence as a last resort.”

“Well,” Sonic continued, in a whispered voice, “ _unless_ we’re dealing with Egghead.”

“That’s…” Tails froze with a raised, protesting finger, thinking through the blue hedgehog’s commentary. “That’s…actually correct. Yes kids,” the orange kitsune nodded his head, looking at them through the mirror, “violence is wrong unless you have no other option, _or_ you come across Eggman’s machines.”

“Or the fat tub o’ lard himself!” Sonic exclaimed. While Blitz, Amanda, and Clover laughed, Leo rolled his eyes, the most uncomfortable out of the group snuggled together in the blue hedgehog’s arms.

“Sonic,” Tails said in a whispered voice, “it’s not very nice to call people fat, remember?” 

“Ahh, gotcha.” Sonic gave his younger brother a wink before returning his attention to the fox cubs. “N’ remember, Sonic n’ Tails say to _never_ make fun of someone for their weight.”

“ _Unless it’s Eggman_ ,” the blue hedgehog whispered.

“What was that?” Tails asked with a furrowed brow. 

“Oh, nothin’, bud!”

“Likely story…” The orange kitsune returned his attention to the flight path before him. The sun was starting to recede in the blue, mid-afternoon sky, still more than enough light to look for the reckless, high-flyin’ baby fox.

“Geesh,” Sonic brought his hands behind his head and leaned back, “bein’ a parent’s hard work.” He sighed as he closed his eyes.

“At least he’s trying,” Clover noted to Amanda to her side. “A bit unrefined, but he truly cares about us.”

“Exactly!” Amanda replied with a nod. “He’s _learning_.” She snuggled against her side as the green-clad fox closed her eyes, placing her small palm over hers.

“I see her!” Tails pointed ahead to a small biplane in the distance. Unlike the Tornado, Screwy’s model was more rudimentary, reaching a lower top speed than even Tails’ original biplane.

No response.

“Sonic?” Tails peered back to reveal his older brother sleeping between the fox cubs, snoring gently with his hands behind his head. “Wake up, _ni-san_!” This caught the attention of the snoozing hedgehog and the fox cubs alike.

“Huh, whut?” Sonic shook his head to wake himself up. “Whud I miss?”

“Look!” Tails pointed forward once more, Screwy’s aircraft now closer.

“Way to go, Tails!” Sonic gave him a thumbs up from the backseat. “What’s the plan now?”

“I’ll try calling her.” The orange fox reached for his corded speakerphone affixed to his dashboard. “Screwy, this is Daddy. Do you read me, over?”

“Dada!” her voice rang through the speaker.

“Listen to me _very carefully_ ,” Tails replied, furrowing his brow as he tightened his grip on the phone. “I need you to return home and land ASAP, all right? Your plane hasn’t been properly inspected or tested. You can’t just fly off in a plane you whipped together in an afternoon.”

Silence.

“Can you hear me, over?”

“…Gaga.”

_Click._

“I think she hung up on me,” Tails said with a shrug.

“She _what_?” Sonic pulled himself forward, resting his chin above Tails’ headrest. “Man, she’s _so_ grounded.”

Blitz crawled over the seat where Sonic was sitting moments ago.

“Is Screwy flying that plane?” he asked.

“It sounds like it,” Amanda replied, tears forming in her eyes. “I hope she doesn’t crash…” Clover patted her hand with a smile.

“I’m sure Screwdriver will be all right. She _is_ a smart cookie, after all.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right.” Amanda sighed as she slouched back in her seat and wiped away the tears. “Hey, where did Blitz go?” she asked as she looked to her right, unable to find the energetic fox who had been there mere moments earlier. Looking around the cabin, they soon found Blitz crawling up Sonic’s blue quills, eventually reaching his head.

“You go, Screwy! Whoohooo!” he yelled as he pulled against the hedgehog’s triangular ears.

“Woah, there…” Sonic grabbed the free-roaming fox and cradled him in his arms. “You should chill with your siblings, dude.”

“Okay, Papa…” Blitz replied in baby speak, wearing a sour expression, one which changed to a giggle as the blue hedgehog poked his furry belly.

“See, all better.” With a smile, Sonic placed Blitz next to Amanda as he returned his attention to his younger brother. Leo scoffed from the sidelines.

“How long do you think her plane can fly, Tails?”

“Good question.” Tails raised a gloved finger to his chin in thought. “Let’s see…given the size of the plane, and assuming she filled it to the brim, I’d say she could go another several hours.”

“Several hours!” Sonic exclaimed. “When’s she supposed to take her nap?” Tails peered down at his watch, his eyes bulging out at the unwelcomed realization. 

“Her nap was scheduled an hour ago, but she went rogue and built that _heccin’_ plane instead.” The two stared at the aircraft ahead, which started tilting to the left.

“Screwy!” they yelled.

“All right, kids,” Sonic said as he spun around, “I need you to stay put, you understand?”

“Yes, Papa,” replied Blitz, Amanda, and Clover as they nodded. Leo merely looked up at the blue hedgehog, grunted, and resumed his gaze out the window.

“Tails,” Sonic continued as he peered down at his little brother from above the headrest. “Get us next to Screwy n’ open the hatch. I have a plan.” The fox peered up at the blue hedgehog with a worried expression.

“I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Sonic…” Doing as he was told, Tails increased his velocity, swerving around the smaller aircraft and bringing his speed closer to hers. Thankfully, Screwy leveled off her plane, and her flight path was now less sporadic.

Sonic jumped out of the cockpit as soon as Tails opened the protective glass covering, riding the right wing like a surfboard. Observing the smaller plane, he could make out the sight of the prodigious fox cub smiling and waving back at him, giggling without a care in the world.

“Here!” Looking back, Sonic caught a wireless headset.

“Thanks, buddy!” The blue hedgehog gave Tails a thumbs up as he put on the device and returned his focus to Screwdriver’s plane.

“Listen to me,” Sonic began as he pointed back the way they came, “you _need_ to return home n’ land this plane.” Screwy placed a finger against her chin in thought.

“Nah.”

“ _N-nani_?” Sonic was dumbstruck. “Listen to your papa, Screwdriver Prower-Hedgehog!” She blew him a raspberry before disconnecting the call.

“That son of a…” The blue hedgehog removed his headset and crushed it in his palm, the pieces falling to the ocean below. Sighing, Sonic jumped back in his seat between the fox cubs. “Well, I’m all out of ideas.”

“I think we’re in luck!” Tails pointed to Screwdriver’s biplane, which veered to the right, approaching a floating island in the distance.

“Well kiddos,” Sonic observed the fox cubs below, who intently stared back at him, save for the apathetic Leo to his right.

“Time for a lil’ fieldtrip.”


	9. Angel Island

Screwdriver scanned the horizon as she veered her biplane to the right, enamored by the floating mass of land nearby.

“Ooooooh.” She giggled as she steered the aircraft, flying just high enough to be level with the ground. “Time to land!” A second glance, however, revealed trees lining the edge of the floating island, preventing her from touching down. 

“Woahh!” She veered left and followed the irregular shape of the island’s perimeter, studying the trees that formed a protective barrier against foreign threats, looking for an opening to land her plane. Before she realized it, though, she felt the sun’s warmth abandon her, obstructed by a tall tree resting upon a peninsula jutting out from the rest of the land.

“Ahhhhh!” Pulling the yoke toward her, she clenched her teeth as the plane swooped up and began to climb along the tree’s trunk, eventually achieving a greater height than its peak. As she was about to sigh in relief, though, the plane fell back, performing a reverse loop under the weight of gravity. Attempting to keep her cool, the prodigious fox gripped her smol hands to the yoke as the plane dove down, barely missing the land mass and swooping beneath the floating island instead. 

“What’s she _doing_?” asked Sonic, who worriedly peered down at the smaller plane below, placing his gloved hands against the sleek glass hatch of the Tornado.

“She doesn’t know where to land,” Tails replied, eyeing the troubled hedgehog through the rearview mirror. “Here, let’s follow her.” Entering into a nosedive, the orange kitsune expertly swooped below the island, leveling off his plane while following the disoriented fox cub from a safe distance. Tails grabbed the corded speakerphone from his dashboard and cleared his throat.

“Screwy, this is daddy.”

“Daddy!” Despite having nearly crashed moments earlier, Screwdriver was still in a cheery mood, one made all the better with the reassuring voice of Tails to keep her company.

“Follow me, Screwy. I know where we can land safely.”

“Hmmm…?” She cocked her head as she pondered her daddy’s request. “Okay!”

“Phew…” Tails wiped his brow. “Glad to see she’s finally listening to us!”

“Won’t make her any less _grounded_ …” Sonic grumbled from the backseat, sitting between Blitz, Leo, Amanda, and Clover as he folded his arms in annoyance. The other fox cubs weren’t paying much attention to their runaway sibling, however.

“Aha!” Blitz called, placing his palm over Leo’s fist. “Paper beats rock! That’s two out of three.” The edgy fox cub groaned as he fished through his tail for a Mobium, flicking the coin to the energetic fox to his side. Blitz caught the coin and pumped his fist up in the air. “All right!” He exclaimed. “Who’s number one?”

Leo scoffed. “I have no use of worldly possessions anyway…” Leo crossed his arms as he peered out the window, having no doubt saved this edgy one-liner for just the right moment. 

On the other side of the blue hedgehog, Amanda stretched out each individual finger of her left glove before pulling it off, extending her hand out and analyzing each of her fingers.

“What are you doing, Amanda?” Clover asked from her side, leaning forward to see what caught her attention.

“Just looking at my nails.” Amanda showed off her green nails complete with silver polka dots.

“They look _adorable_!” Clover exclaimed, resting her hand on her sister’s leg. “When did you get them done?”

“Ohh, the other day.” She put on a big smile. “Daddy helped me, too!”

“He did?” Clover placed a palm over her mouth. “But…he’s a _guy_.”

Amanda chuckled under her breath. “The right hand looks worse, but his technique got better by the time we did the left.” 

“Very pretty.” Clover gave her sister a warm smile with closed eyes, only interrupted by the sun appearing seemingly out of the nowhere as the biplane emerged from beneath the floating island. Giving himself some leeway, Tails pulled the yoke, swooping the aircraft upward.

“Now follow me,” Tails ordered into his cordless phone.

“Ga!” Screwy replied in baby speak. Peering up, she furrowed her brow as she pulled her yoke toward her belly as well, following her daddy to the blue skies above. She kept her distance as the elder fox leveled off and made a 180-degree turn, following shortly after him. They were now approaching the island’s surface once more.

“You see that clearing up ahead?” Tails asked. Screwdriver looked forward, nodding as she spotted a grassy landing strip between lush trees.

“Mmhmm,” she replied with a nod.

“Good, now just land behind me. Make sure to deploy your landing gear!”

“Kay!” She replied with a giggle. As the orange kitsune touched down on the island, Screwdriver steadied her plane, preparing herself to land as well, but as she leveled off, her yoke snapped from the rod to which it was affixed. The fox yelped in surprise.

“What’s wrong, Screwy?” Tails asked as he rolled to a stop. He peered up to find his daughter flying overhead. “Where are you _going_?” The prodigious kit froze in indecision, holding the steering contraption in her hand for several seconds before shaking her head and attempting to slide it back into place. Unfortunately, the yoke simply fell to the floor, refusing to stay in place. She was only now starting to realize that constructing a biplane in a matter of hours was, perhaps, not one of her brighter ideas. 

“Whaaaaa!” Screwdriver looked ahead once more, finding the plane’s altitude starting to fall as she descended upon an open clearing. She could see a shrine with stone steps near the end, a large, glimmering emerald resting on top and a picturesque waterfall serving as its backdrop.

“Screwy? Screwy!” Tails yelled into his phone. He only heard the sound of desperate screaming from his daughter on the other line, followed by a brief crash and complete silence. The orange fox called her name once more, but she didn’t respond.

“Screwy…” Tails dropped the phone from his gloved paw, his arms falling to his sides as he gazed down at his legs, sitting still in the pilot’s seat as tears started forming in his eyes.

Pulling himself up from between the other fox cubs, Sonic reached over his younger brother, pressing a button on the dashboard to open the protective glass casing. He picked him up, cradling the kitsune in his arms as he jumped to the grass below. The blue hedgehog set him down feet first.

“I’m sure Screwy’s all right,” Sonic reassured, placing a palm on Tails’ shoulder as he sniffled, “after all, I’m sure she _must’ve_ built some sort of safety doohickey or somethin’…” The orange fox wiped his nose with the tip of his namesake. “But we’ll only know for sure if we go search for her.” Tails looked up at his older brother, his radiating smile filling him with rejuvenated confidence, giving him a renewed sense of hope when all seemed lost only moments earlier.

“…Right.” Wiping the moisture from his eyes, Tails gave Sonic a confident nod before activating his rotary namesakes, flying up to the cockpit to collect the four fox cubs, two in either arm. Returning to the ground below, gently landing with bent knees, the orange kitsune handed the blue hedgehog Clover and Amanda while he kept Blitz and Leo in his own arms. “Let’s go!” Pressing his two sons against his furry chest, Tails sped forward with the aid of his tails, Sonic running alongside as they approached Screwdriver’s last known trajectory. 

* * *

Yawning into his gloved paw, a lone red echidna stretched his arms as he sat upright against a large, green emerald several times his size. Crossing one leg over the other, Knuckles pushed up his cowboy hat and slid his sunglasses down to get a good view of the trees gently swaying in the wind. Taking in a breath of fresh air, he allowed his aviators to rest on his muzzle as he grabbed his tall glass of grape juice from his side, sipping at it with a straw.

“Ahhh, now _this_ is the life.” Setting the glass down with a _clink_ , the sound of ice cubes colliding with each other in the otherwise still, quiet afternoon, the red echidna closed his eyes once more, pushing his hat back down to shield his eyes from the sunlight. As he was about to fall asleep, however, the ears under his dreadlocks perked up, alerting him to a noise generally foreign to Angel Island.

Tipping his hat up, and pushing his glasses down his snout, he gasped at the sight of a biplane approaching him at a rapid pace. Tipping over his juice as he shot up, Knuckles waved his arms in the air.

“STOP!” he cried, hoping to capture the pilot’s attention, but it was no use. “ _Kuso_!” The red echidna dove out of the way, his glasses and hat flying off as he rolled down the stone steps of the shrine seconds before the miniature biplane collided with the mystical gem. The plane exploded, engulfed in a fiery flame, while the emerald remained unscathed.

Knuckles spun around shortly after reaching the ground, dodging a few pieces of shrapnel that flew in all directions before catching his breath, watching as the fire roared around the mechanical mass which could not withstand the amazing, chaos-infused powers of the Master Emerald.

“Whoever was in there couldn’t have survived that.” With a sigh, Knuckles planted his sneaker on the first stone step of the shrine, stopping as he heard a _whooshing_ sound from above. Looking up, his jaw dropped at the sight of a baby fox cub, who slowly descended back-first with a mysterious green aura surrounding them.

“I gotchu little guy.” Lifting his arms, the red echidna grabbed the orange kit, who was all smiles as they giggled at the sight of a new friend. Knuckles looked at them in confusion. “Where’d you come from, lil’ guy?” Cradling the furry fox baby in his arms, the red echidna peered up at the fiery mess above once more. “Don’t tell me… _you_ were in that plane, weren’t you?”

“Gaga!” She nodded her head, a prominent UwU on her face. Knuckles almost UwU’d back, overcome by the fox’s overwhelming sense of floofy cuteness, but he shook his head and, instead, sat on the stone stair, placing the cub on his left leg.

“I don’t know how to tell you this,” Knuckles began, sighing as he collected his thoughts, “but your pilot didn’t survive the crash.”

“Goo?” The cub cocked their head while raising a finger to their lower lip.

“You know, the one who flies the pla—” The red echidna froze as he eyed the goggles strapped to their forehead. Observing the fox more closely, he found the cub wearing a utility belt not unlike the one Tails wore.

“But…you can’t be related…to _Tails_?”

“Dada!” they cheerily yelled, giggling as they clapped their hands.

“ _Dada_?” Knuckles raised a hand to his chin. “Since when did Tails become a _father_? And what about Sonic?”

“Papa!” they replied even louder.

“Okay, now I’m _really_ confused.” The red echidna shrugged his shoulders. “So if they were looking after you, where are they now?” The baby raised a finger to their chin in thought before twisting themself around, pointing away from the shrine and down the dirt path leading to the clearing beyond. Just down the hill and past the echidna’s small cabin was the forest leading to the landing strip Sonic and Tails always used when stopping by for a visit.

“So they’re already here?” Knuckles asked. The fox replied with an enthusiastic nod. Pondering for a few moments, he lifted himself from the stair and cradled the baby in his arms once more. “Well that settles that.” He turned around and peered up at the mystical gem for the final time. “Sorry, but I need to take care of this cub first. I’ll come back and check up on you later.” The cub was confused, unable to comprehend why the strange echidna was talking to himself.

“Hey, Knucklehead!”

“Huh?” Spinning around once more, he found Sonic and Tails running toward him. Knuckles chuckled gently under his breath as he noticed the four other fox cubs in their arms. The cub in the echidna’s arms smiled brightly as they extended their arms toward their parents in excitement.

“Well Sonic…Tails…” Knuckles raised the child in the air. “Care to explain _this_?”

* * *

 **I apologize that this chapter took so long to publish! I prioritized finishing my longfic,** [ **_A Prelude to Chaos Control_ ** ](https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13596115/1/A-Prelude-to-Chaos-Control) **, and then I started the homebuying process shortly after. The latter has taken up a lot of my time, but I still hope to continue writing on a somewhat regular basis.**

 **Special thanks to** [ **Stardown** ](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/9588070/Stardown) **for coming up with the idea for the fox cubs to visit Angel Island!**


	10. Uncle Knuckles

“So let me get this straight,” Knuckles began, crossing his arms as the five fox cubs played together on the dirt path beside Sonic and Tails, who sat together on a large boulder, watching their babies from above, “you found these kids in a dumpster…and you _brought them home_?”

“Yep!” Tails replied with a smile, his namesakes fluttering from behind.

“You _do_ know that’s illegal, right?” Knuckles watched as Tails extended his leg, blocking a fast running Blitz from colliding with Clover admiring a small flower. 

“Illegal?” Tails grabbed the energetic cub and cradled him against his chest. “What do you mean?”

“You basically kidnapped them, right?” The red echidna tapped his foot in impatience.

“What!?” Tails audibly gasped. “Why would you even _imply_ something so terrible?”

“It’s the truth, isn’t it?” Knuckles scoffed. “Sure, you found the babies in a dumpster, but you didn’t even bother to take them to the police. You just brought them home. Definitely sounds like kidnapping to me.”

“It is _not_!” Tails shouted, raising his voice as he stood up in anger. Blitz started to cry in his arms. “I _saved_ them from having to live in an orphanage! Do you know what it’s like not to have any parents?”

“Don’t talk to me about not having parents!” Knuckles shouted, flames growing in his eyes as the four cubs stopped playing and watched from below. “Sure, my life may not have been as difficult as yours, but I never had parents either.”

“Oh…” The orange kitsune’s eyes began to glisten. “I’m…sorry, Knuckles.”

“No…it’s fine.” The red echidna turned away. An awkward silence ensued.

“Cheer up, Tails!” Sonic patted his younger brother on the shoulder. “I’m sure Knuckles wasn’t offended.” The blue hedgehog bolted up and zipped a few steps to face Knuckles. “And I don’t think what we did was kidnapping. After all…” Sonic looked back at the orange kitsune with a warm smile on his face. “…that’s kinda how I met Tails. He may’ve followed me, but I still took him in as my lil’ bro.” The blue hedgehog turned to the red echidna once more. “So…do you think I kidnapped Tails way back then? Should I have just left him at a foster home and called it a day?”

“Well…” Knuckles stammered, stepping back and clearing his throat. “I…guess I see your point.”

“Then there ya go!” Sonic patted the red echidna against his shoulder with enough force to cause him to lose his balance. “So if _I_ didn’t kidnap Tails, then _we_ didn’t kidnap these cubs.” The blue hedgehog wore an ironclad smirk, one emulated by the orange kitsune who smiled back at him, rocking Blitz in his arms. The cub was no longer crying. 

“Hey Sonic,” Tails interjected, “don’t you think it’s getting kind of late?”

“Yeah, I suppose it is…” Sonic peered up at the sky, watching the sun slowly setting below the horizon across the ocean.

“Should we get the kiddos home?” Tails handed Blitz to Sonic before picking up Amanda and Leo, cradling them in either arm.

The blue hedgehog plopped the cub on his head, who grabbed hold of his ears for balance. “Well…we’ve been meaning to go on a lil’ family vay-cay, right?” The blue hedgehog lifted Clover and Screwy from the ground. “And we’re already on Angel Island…so why don’t we camp out?”

“Now that you mention it…” Tails stood alongside his older brother while admiring the sunset. “The weather conditions _are_ pretty nice.” The orange kitsune peered down at the cubs in his arms. “What do you think? Wanna camp out for the night?”

“That sounds fun!” Amanda replied in unintelligible baby speak, but her answer was clear from her enthusiastic nod of approval and accompanying bright smile. Leo, meanwhile, crossed his arms and looked away with a _humph_.

“How about you three?” Sonic asked the remaining cubs.

“A night outdoors sounds lovely,” Clover replied with a smol yet adorable smile.

“This is gonna be fun!” Screwy added with a giggle while twirling a screwdriver between her fingers.

“I can hardly wait!” Blitz declared from above, laying across Sonic’s head, looking at his papa upside down. His head was shaking in excitement. 

“If you’re serious,” Knuckles stepped between the two brothers, “follow me. Maybe I can teach the cubs a thing or two about roughing it like a proper outdoorsperson.”

The kits cheered as Sonic and Tails followed him down the path leading to his clearing.

* * *

“All right, kids,” Knuckles began, pacing in front of the bonfire pit near his cabin, the edge of the floating island steps away. He adjusted his reading glasses, worn purely for effect. “Today, Uncle Knuckles will be teaching you how to start a bonfire. This is an important life skill that will serve you well if you’re ever lost in the wilderness, as the flames can keep predators away and provide warmth in the cold.” 

“Hehe, he’s kinda funny,” Screwy said to her left, nudging Amanda.

“I think it’s cute,” she replied with a smile. Screwdriver was about to ask her other siblings for their thoughts, but Blitz was daydreaming, his eyes glazed over in boredom, Clover was backed far away from the pit, afraid of the impending fire, and Leo was sitting up front, his hands holding his head up as he watched his teacher pace around, eager to learn how to conquer the art of the flame. 

“The first thing you need to learn about fire,” Knuckles continued, planting his feet on the ground and pushing his glasses up his snout, “is that it is _not_ a toy; it’s a tool, a lifesaving tool that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Be sure others are far enough away so they don’t get burned, and _always_ put out your fires when you’re done.”

As Knuckles was giving his lecture, Sonic and Tails were watching from several feet behind the cubs. The blue hedgehog, leaning back against the arms propping him up, turned to the orange kitsune who was vigorously writing in a notepad while staring intently at Professor Echidna.

“Whatcha doin’, bro?”

“Taking notes just in case we’re quizzed on this later.” Tails stuck his tongue out the side of his mouth as he crossed out a spelling error and awkwardly wrote around it before flipping his notepad to its next page.

“You _do_ know this isn’t actually a class, right?” Sonic asked with one brow raised higher than the other. “We’re not gonna be tested on this stuff.” Tails stopped and raised the eraser end of his pencil to his chin in thought. He shrugged before returning to his pad, force of habit outweighing the actual need to take notes.

“Always a workaholic,” Sonic replied with a smile, scooting himself in closer to his younger brother. The blue hedgehog wrapped his arm around Tails’ back as the orange kitsune wrapped a namesake around his older brother while staring at the red echidna intently, writing his words down verbatim as the two kept each other warm. 

“First things first.” Knuckles continued, getting down on his knees and holding a rock in one hand and a small piece of steel in the other. “You will need some flint and steel to start a fire. You can find flint in the forest, but I always recommend keeping some flint and steel on-hand at _all times_.” The red echidna tightened his grip, flint in one hand and steel in the other. “Next, just bang them together with enough force to make sparks.” Demonstrating for the class, sparks flew off and landed in the pit. “Just do that a few times, and you’ll have a fire in no time!”

Knuckles repeated this movement, sparks falling from the rock and landing in the pit, the twigs surrounding the logs failing to ignite. 

“C’mon fire, work with me here!” Knuckles banged them harder between his palms. With a few more angry attempts, he inadvertently hit the palm of his hand with the steel. “Owwww!” He dropped the items and tended to his hand, removing his glove and blowing on the small bruise.

The five fox cubs laughed in amusement.

“You think this is _funny_?” Knuckles asked in annoyance, furrowing his brow.

“Yep!” they replied in baby speak, nodding their heads simultaneously as they giggled together. The red echidna did his best to suppress his anger, a vein forming on his forehead as his arms started to shake.

_Calm down, Knuckles, they’re just kids…_

_Yeah, I suppose you’re right._

_Thanks…umm…me?_

With a deep breath, the red echidna returned his focus to the firepit, striking the flint and steel a few more times. While he was able to produce sparks, he simply couldn’t get them to ignite into flames.

“Hey Knuckles,” Tails stepped over to the red echidna and pulled a lighter from his namesakes, “wanna borrow this?”

“No way.” Knuckles replied, swatting his hand away. “What would happen if your kids were stranded in the middle of nowhere with no food, water, _or_ lighter? They need to be taught how to properly build a fire, hunt, fish, fend off predators, dress meat…”

“I think we’ll just stick to the fire lesson today,” Tails replied, nervously stepping back with his arms outstretched, a drop of sweat rolling down his face.

“Suit yourself.” Knuckles shrugged. After a few more strikes, the red echidna jumped for joy as his final sparks ignited the twigs. He leaned over, carefully blowing against the small flame to help it grow, soon engulfing the nearby twigs before eventually igniting the logs, providing an ample campfire for the party to enjoy.

“Ah yeah! I _still_ got it!” he cheered, pumping a fist into the air in accomplishment. The five cubs were confused, scooting backward to seek the protection of their fathers.

“Looks like he’s scaring them,” Tails whispered into Sonic’s ear.

“What’d you expect?” Sonic replied with a whisper of his own. The two chuckled under their breath. 

“Is someone laughing during class?” Knuckles asked with a stern look, eyeing the students before him.

“No!” The seven replied simultaneously. 

“I _know_ you’re lying,” Knuckles replied, folding his arms as the fire grew, smoke billowing from its top, “If I’m not allowed to chuckle, you guys aren’t either.” The party remained silent, eyeing the red echidna carefully. “Okay, fine…” Knuckles sighed. “If you tell me who laughed, I’ll bring out the smore ingredients.”

“Smores!?” The fox cubs asked in excitement. They instantly turned around and pointed to their daddy and papa.

“You traitors!” Sonic and Tails exclaimed. The cubs laughed in response, forcing the brotherly duo to shatter their angry façade. The happy family chuckled merrily; even Leo couldn’t help but smirk. 

“Sounds like you guys are having fun.” The red echidna gave off some chuckles of his own, breaking his self-imposed rule. “I’ll go grab the sm—” He was interrupted by the blue blur leaving the campfire and returning seconds later with smore pokers, graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate bars in hand.

“About 152 steps ahead of ya, Knucklehead.” Sonic set the pokers down and handed the remaining stack of supplies to Knuckles before clapping his hands in satisfaction and sitting next to his younger brother once more.

The red echidna cleared his throat as he collected himself. “Well, how about it, kids?” Blitz, Screwy, Amanda, and Clover were enamored, salivating at the thought of trying what sounded like a delectable treat, their minds unable to comprehend the sheer deliciousness of the traditional campfire delicacy. Leo, meanwhile, remained transfixed on the flames, his hands slowly approaching the fire. 

“Hey Leo,” Tails pulled the cub away, “fire’s dangerous, remember?”

“I’ll show _you_ who’s dangerous…” Leo muttered in baby speak, putting on a pouty face as the orange kitsune picked him up and cradled him in his arms.

“ _You wanna join your siblings by the fire_?” Tails asked in pretend baby speak. “ _You wanna learn how to make smores_?”

“ _Nnnnnoo_.” Leo shook his head, folding his arms as he turned his face away with a _humph_.

“Don’t be so grumpy, lil’ man,” Sonic said from the side. With a chuckle, he poked the edgy fox’s chubby, furry belly with his finger, forcing him to crack a smile. “Ohhh, ticklish, are we?”

“You wouldn’t _dare_ …” Leo gave Sonic a wicked stare, one that didn’t stop him from a multi-pronged tickling onslaught. 

“Okayokayokayokay!” Leo swatted Sonic’s fingers away. “I’ll do it! Just promise _never_ to do that again!” Tails set the baby down, who crawled over to his siblings who were sitting up, attentively observing their instructor.

“Alrighty then,” Knuckles picked up a skewer from the grass. “It’s _smore_ time!”


	11. Fluffy Marshmallows

Knuckles twirled the marshmallow skewer in his hands, mesmerizing the fox cubs below with his surprisingly agile acrobatics. He grinned as he spun the trident almost as fast as Tails’ namesakes at maximum speed.

“All right, someone wanna throw me a marshmallow?” The red echidna nudged his foot toward the bag of fluffy treats as the fox cubs tilted their heads in confusion.

“Lemme demonstrate.” Tails carefully stepped over the babies and used a single namesake to grab a marshmallow from within. “Ready, Knuckles?” The young fox stepped back, facing sideways from the red echidna like a baseball pitcher, his tail upright and at the ready.

“Give it your all!” Knuckles cried.

“Here I go!” With a shout, he rapidly flicked his namesake, and with impeccable precision, the red echidna abruptly stopped spinning the skewer and made a jabbing motion, the tip expertly piercing through the marshmallow.

“Woahh...” The cubs were mesmerized. Leo’s eyes even glistened moments before turning away, the edgy fox folding his arms with a _humph_.

“If you think _that’s_ impressive,” Tails declared as he grabbed several more marshmallows from the bag with the tips of his two namesakes, “wait until you see _this_!” Planting his feet on the ground, and bending his knees, the orange kitsune whipped his tails once more, the treats approaching Knuckles from different altitudes.

“Ha! _Child’s play_.” With a smirk, he swiped the metal rod, poking through each marshmallow as they approached him. For added flare, he caught the final marshmallow in his mouth, chewing it with a satisfied grin.

“Yay!” The fox cubs clapped from below. “Uncle! Knuckles! Uncle! Knuckles!”

“Thaaank you, thaaank you.” Knuckles bowed, placing a palm against his belly as he waved his skewer in triumph. “I’ll be here all week.”

“All right, Knucklehead,” Sonic lifted himself from the grass, patting Tails on the shoulder as he walked past him and picked up the marshmallow bag. “Tails’ speed is pretty impressive, but can you handle my Super Sonic Pitch?”

“You’re running may be fast,” Knuckles replied, handing the skewer full of marshmallows to Tails before grabbing a fresh one from the ground, “but we _both_ know who’s stronger.”

“I’ll make you eat those words!” Sonic yelled in jest as he planted his feet on the grass, bent his knees, and readied himself for the marshmallow assault. “Are you ready for this?”

“Do your worst!” Knuckles steadied his trident for the impending onslaught.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn ya.” With a snicker, the blue hedgehog poured the contents of the bag into his cupped palms before tossing them up with a swing of his arms. “Here we go!” Sonic jumped, grabbing the lowest marshmallow and throwing it toward the red echidna.

“ _N-nani!?_ ” Surprised by the unorthodox strategy, Knuckles swung his arm in the nick of time, the marshmallow skewering at an imperfect angle into the trident’s right-most spoke. Unable to celebrate, however, the red echidna was met with a volley of incoming marshmallows from above, the blue hedgehog still ascending from his jump as he rapidly threw the fluffy treats at him. 

“ _Oraoraoraoraoraora_!” Knuckles yelled as he successfully caught a dozen marshmallows before his trident reached maximum capacity. Having miscalculated the number of projectiles Sonic launched, the next morsel collided against his forehead, followed by multiple rounds across the chest, launching him off the side of the island.

“Knuckles!” Sonic exclaimed as he returned to the surface. Charging a spindash, he followed the red echidna off the edge, yelling as he fell to the water below.

Tails sighed. “Ohh, Sonic. What am I gonna _do_ with you?” He shrugged before turning his attention to the fox cubs. “All right kiddos, daddy will be _right back_ , okay? I’ve gotta save your pappa from drowning.”

“Okay!” They replied in baby speak, nodding their head in understanding.

“While I’m gone,” Tails declared, spinning his rotary namesakes as he floated a few feet from the ground, “Clover is in charge.”

“Ahhhhh, _maaaaaan,_ ” Blitz snapped his fingers.

“I’ll be back soon!” Tails waved goodbye as he jumped off the island’s edge and slowly descended to the water’s surface like a helicopter.

The fox cubs sat in silence, staring at each other in confusion.

“Soooooo,” Amanda began, raising a paw to her lower lip, “what do we do now?”

“I know!” Blitz declared as he raised a finger to the air, “let’s make some s’mores for the grown-ups!”

“That’s a splendid idea!” Clover replied, a small smile covering her muzzle. “Now let’s see…” She peered down at the unopened containers of graham crackers and chocolate bars before shifting her focus to the marshmallow skewers, already full of delectable fluffy goodness. “Who wants to be in charge of cooking?”

“…My time has come.” The party turned their attention to the edgy fox, who was sipping a small box of apple juice. Sucking the last of the beverage dry, he crushed it in the palm of his hand and threw it over his shoulder. “Stand back while the _pyromeister_ does his thing.” Approaching the nearest skewer, he rubbed his hands together before reaching down and picking up the long, metal rod. His legs buckled at the weight as he swung his arms, trying to keep himself balanced.

“Here, lemme help ya,” Blitz stood in front of Leo and grabbed hold of the skewer, helping him stabilize and angle it toward the firepit.

“I never asked for your help,” Leo scoffed as he bent his legs and furrowed his brow, lowering the marshmallows gently into the flames. A small breeze, however, was just enough for the two cubs to sway under the pressure of the heavy rod.

“Silly boys,” Screwy jeered as she joined her brothers, grabbing hold of the skewer from Blitz’s side, “given the relative weight of this cooking apparatus, we need to apply a countervailing force to the—”

“Dumb it down for us, dude.” Blitz’s eyes were glazed over.

“What she means,” Amanda replied, “is we can achieve anything with _teamwork_!”

“That’s right!” Clover added as she and Amanda took their places on opposite ends of the skewer. “We can do _anything_ if we set our minds to it.”

“Yeah!” The foxes who were not Leo cheered. The edgeboi, meanwhile, scoffed at what he perceived to be a childish notion.

“That kind of attitude will only set you up for failure.” He shook his head as he joined his siblings in lowering the marshmallows so they were just above the flames, spinning the skewer as one side developed a light shade of brown. They repeated this ritual until each side of the fluffy treats were evenly cooked.

As the designated leader, Clover got to work organizing her siblings’ tasks. Spreading out a blanket several feet away from the flames, serving as a makeshift preparation station, she assigned Amanda to add the cooked marshmallows to one side of a graham cracker before passing it off to Screwdriver, who meticulously applied a piece of chocolate to the top of the fluffy treats as a fry cook would a slice of cheese over a burger. Finally, Blitz completed each sandwich with another cracker and placed them on paper plates. Leo, having achieved his yearly quota of mushy sibling bonding, sat inches away from the bonfire and peered into the flames, his sense of “emo” rapidly evolving.

Just as the fox kits finished their preparations, Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles emerged from the edge of the floating island. Tails dropped Sonic and Knuckles in a messy, wet heap before collapsing next to them, breathing heavily.

“If you would’ve let Tails carry me up first,” Sonic complained as he rolled off the red echidna, “we could’ve both gotten back faster.”

“Why would I let _you_ go first?” Knuckles retorted, pulling himself up, shaking the water off himself, and folding his arms. “If it weren’t for you, _we_ wouldn’t have fallen off!”

“Oh yeah?” Sonic replied with a furrowed brow. “If you would’ve gone up first, _I_ would’ve drowned.”

“Not my problem you’re afraid of a little water.” Knuckles scoffed.

“Imma make you _drink_ those words!” Sonic spindashed forward as Knuckles braced himself. Before the blue hedgehog could meet his target, though, the orange kitsune stepped between them, using his pudgy belly as a fluffy airbag. Sonic bounced off as if he collided with a Casino Night Zone bumper.

“Stop, guys!” Tails yelled as Sonic fell to the ground once more. “I brought you two up simultaneously so you’d stop arguing! It’s no use complaining about it now…and besides,” The kitsune pointed to the fox cubs sitting around the bonfire, “look what they did for us.”

“Huh?” Sonic and Knuckles said in unison and they approached the small kits. Plates of uneaten s’mores were lined up on the blanket, labeled with red, blue, and orange marker for Knuckles, Sonic, and Tails, respectively.

“Did they… _cook_ these?” Knuckles asked as he grabbed his sandwich from the blanket.

“Seems so…” Tails replied, clutching his s’more with two hands and taking a small bite. He squealed in delight as the delectable combination of sweet flavors interacted with his taste buds. “This…is _amazing_!” He declared. “You did good, kiddos!” The elder fox maintained a prominent UwU as he blushed through his muzzle.

“Fantastic!” Sonic declared with a mouth full of food. “Tails’ cookin’ skills _really_ rubbed off on ‘em.”

“Hmmmm…” Knuckles observed his s’more before taking a bite. “It’s okay…but why isn’t it charred?”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, time out.” Sonic turned his attention to the red echidna. “Are you tellin’ me you _always_ burn your marshmallows?”

“Well…yeah,” Knuckled replied, cocking his head in confusion, “isn’t that how you’re supposed to make them?” Sonic and Tails broke out in a fit of laughter, followed by the fox cubs surrounding the bonfire, happy to see their parents filled with joy. Unamused, Knuckles sat down between Amanda and Clover and grumbled silently to himself as he took another bite of his sandwich. The cubs, meanwhile, chowed down on their own, smaller s’mores, all satisfied with their marshmallow cooking prowess.

The kits started fell asleep one by one as they finished their s’mores, snoozing peacefully on the grass as their light breathing filled the air, their furry faces covered in crumbs and goo.

“Hey, Sonic,” Tails peered up at his older brother as he leaned against him by the firepit, “looks like the kids are exhausted. Should we take them home?”

“I thought we were gonna camp for the night?” Sonic replied as his ears and quills drooped in disappointment.

“Yeah, about that…” Tails pointed to the sky, the sun now covered by dark clouds. “They’re projecting strong thunderstorms for the next several hours. It’s probably best if we get home before the worst of it.”

“ _Fiiiiine_ ,” Sonic grumbled as he lifted himself from the grass, offering his hand to Tails, “I guess I should listen to the smart one, ehh?”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Tails replied with a snicker as he was lifted to his feet. They gathered the children in their arms, save for Blitz who Tails placed on Sonic’s head.

“Thanks for everything, Knucklehead.” Sonic gave his friendly rival a heartfelt wink.

“Feel free to stop by the Mystic Ruins any time!” Tails added with a warm smile.

“I’ll think about it if I can hire a babysitter for the Master Emerald!” Knuckles called out, the sounds of the brotherly duo’s laughter soon dissipating as they made their way back to the Tornado.

* * *

Tails sat in a rocking chair in the fox cubs’ bedroom, cradling Screwy in his arms as he peacefully watched the other kits sleep. He wore a content smile as he rocked the baby, whose smol arms were wrapped around her screwdriver. 

“You ready for bed, Screwy?”

“Y-yeah…” she replied in baby speak before yawning loudly.

“Let’s get you to your crib.” Pulling himself up, the orange kitsune gently placed her in bed. Stepping back, Tails clasped his hands behind his back and sighed, allowing the serotonin to take hold. “Why didn’t I think of raising fox cubs sooner? This _sure_ is the life…” With a content smile, the young fox turned to face the door, finding the blue hedgehog standing near the entrance.

“Oh, hey Sonic,” Tails said in a whispered voice, “here to say goodnight to the kids?”

“No…not quite.” Sonic seemed distressed, his body shaking as he crushed a piece of paper in a gloved hand.

“W-what’s wrong, Sonic?” Tails quickly picked up on his abnormal behavior; if something was stressing Sonic out, then it _must_ be serious.

“Just…just read it, Tails…” He handed his younger brother the crumpled paper and turned away, leaning against the wall as he stared at his sneakers. Reading the letter at breakneck speed, Tails gasped.

“Oh…oh no…”


End file.
